You Time!

For the love of dogs: Environmental planner opens her heart and home

By Erin McQueary
District 10 public information officer

Brenda Powell-Jones, a senior environmental planner, has devoted over 15 years to raising and fostering Labrador retrievers — pouring her heart into dogs that were never meant to be hers.

Through California Labrador Retriever Rescue and Canine Companions, Brenda has fostered 10 Labs and trained two service dogs.

“I spend a lot of time with these dogs, and (letting go) is hard,” Brenda said. “But I think you just need to remember what the purpose is and who they're helping, whose lives they're improving by doing this work, and then handing them over. And I think the same can be said about fostering. It's helpful to know that there's another good place for them, and we’re sort of the intermediary step.”

Foster dogs usually stay with Brenda for two to six months. Service dogs, however, became a part of her life for nearly two years.

In 2018, her youngest daughter wanted a second Lab as a pet. Instead, they decided to raise a service dog. They were paired with Guinevere, a 2-month-old yellow Lab.

For two years, Guinevere graced the halls of Caltrans Headquarters in Sacramento, where Brenda worked at the time. Guinevere slept under Brenda’s desk while she worked, and they took breaks walking around the Capitol.

Brenda and her daughter also took training courses with Guinevere, where they learned to teach basic commands, sit, down, stand and wait.

Then they had to say goodbye.

After completing basic training with families, service dogs move to a six-month advanced training center where they are evaluated and undergo intensive training to determine if they are the right fit to serve people who are in wheelchairs, have post traumatic stress disorder, are hearing impaired, or to provide comfort to people in facilities like hospitals.

Guinevere learned to identify auditory prompts and then direct a person to the source of those sounds. She was partnered with a hearing-impaired man in March 2021.

Brenda got her second companion dog, Archie, in April 2020.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, “We ended up with an overlap between sending Guinevere to training and getting a new puppy. It was a great opportunity for little Archie to have a mentor in the house.” Brenda said.

Archie trained as a PTSD support companion — learning to calm nightmares by lying across his owner, and create space in crowded situations. Archie was partnered with a veteran in Montana in July 2022.

Brenda says that of all the dogs she’s had to let go of over the years, it was hardest to say goodbye to Archie, but regular FaceTime check-ins let her see that Archie is helping his owner and thriving — especially when he’s romping through the snow.

She understands this type of volunteer work can be difficult for some, but she encourages people to help in any way they can.

Although Brenda last fostered in January, she’s still deeply involved. Now focused on her three Cavalier King Charles Spaniels, her volunteer work centers on yard checks for adoptive families and driving dogs to their new homes in the “Lab Cab.”

She encourages others to lend a hand, noting even small acts have big impacts:

• Emergency fostering for a few days can save a dog from a shelter kill list or a Parvo outbreak at a shelter.
• Temporary care for about a week can support foster parents on vacation.
• Some shelters offer “day away” programs — brief reprieves that lower stress and boost adoptability.
• Donations of food, bedding, and time are always welcome.

To learn more about Brenda’s favorite organizations, visit www.canine.org and www.cc-labrescue.org.