Fosters provide temporary homes, initial training, and love and support for animals in need. By fostering, you increase the chances a dog or cat is adopted and help us open more space in our shelter for other urgent animals. We provide food, any needed supplies, and pay for all medical expenses for dogs in foster care. You provide the space, love, and attention they so desperately need.
Foster Responsibilities
As a foster, you provide love, care, initial training (which may include crate and leash training and/or housebreaking) and socialization. The time you spend with the dog or cat greatly increases their chance of adoption. Foster lengths typically range from 2 to 4 weeks, but can be longer for harder to place animals. We will place an animal according to your needs and best match for your family. We also ask that fosters share the adoptable pets to their social media accounts and send us regular updates with photos and videos so we can update adoption listings. It is also the foster's job to let us know when food and supplies are needed (with as much notice as possible) and to transfer to and from veterinary appointments.
Foster Failures
One of the most common reasons people won't foster is because they are afraid they won't be able to part with an animal once it is in their care. Would you rather cry seeing an animal leave to go to an amazing forever home or cry because the animal was euthanized due to lack of fosters and space? That is the reality of rescue. Fosters truly save lives. But if you really can't let go, no worries! When a foster decides to keep their foster pet, this is known as a "foster fail" in the rescue world. In this case, fail is a good thing because it means the animal now has a forever home. We screen fosters as thoroughly as adopters just in case fosters decide to fail. Fosters always get first pick on adoption UNLESS the animal has already been committed to another home. We would let you know if that applies BEFORE you commit to fostering that pet.
Take the Next Steps
If you would like to open your heart and home to a temporary dog or cat to help them find a forever family, please complete the application at the link below. We will be in touch by email if you are a fit for one of our animals in need.