Selectmen last week voted to merge Canton’s animal control department into the Police Department, a change that has long been in the works, according to Police Chief Kenneth N. Berkowitz. He said he is looking forward to having Animal Control Officer Nadya Branca and the other two part-time officers as members of his force. Branca will serve the town as a special police officer with powers of enforcement and arrest, he said. She took over the job from Paul E. Bastable, who was arrested in Stoughton for selling drugs from a town animal control van. “We spoke about (the merger) before. We just never pulled the trigger on it,’’ Berkowitz said. Animal control was previously under the supervision of the town administrator. - Elaine Cushman Carroll