Have you ever considered being a foster or sponsor to a shelter animal? A foster takes a dog or cat from a shelter into their home on a temporary basis. This is a very good thing to do. Fostering frees up space to make room for others in need. Fostering also provides a means of accessing an animal’s true nature which is often difficult to see in a high stress shelter environment. Many dogs & cats don’t cope well in a shelter environment & would do much better in a home setting. You can foster a mother with pups, or a senior, or an animal with special needs.

Adopting dogs & cats into permanent homes is the ultimate goal for shelters & rescue groups, but fostering is another, equally impawtant step in the adoption process. Dog fosters are those often unsung, frequently short-term volunteers who pawvide love, food & shelter for rescued animals awaiting a forever home.

Without dog fosters many adoptions would never be possible. Sadly, no-kill shelters are the exception, not the rule & far too many dogs are euthanized simply because there is nowhere to house them; fostering offers a much needed reprieve. Furthermore, many dogs, those that are too stressed or those in need of recuperative care or training don’t fare well in a shelter environment, making it difficult to appeal to would-be adopters.

Last September we reached out to our local Animal rescue Home Again.  Christine of Home Again met huMom at the local pound where she introduced huMom to a dog with no name.  He was picked up pawing down a rural road in a near by town.  Not much was known about this boy other than he was a senior & huMom had requested a senior dog.  Eddy as he is known now was taken to a local Vet clinic where he was examined, vaccinated & neutered.  We were told pick him up the next day.

 

Eddy was groggy when we brought him home but once the anesthesia wore off he seemed to adjust to his new enviroment sniffing things & ejoying all the dog beds; he now has taken over the sofa & Knotty Toys for Good Dogs hemp toys available to him. 

We soon learned Eddy was not house broken, he was anxious at night & was afraid of thunder. Teaching Eddy where & when to relieve himself took many months, a lot of patience, loads laundry & carpet cleaning.  HuMom pawvides runners & mats for me since I often slip on our hard slate floors.  Eddy has learned our routine & even if it is broken he waits & does his business outside.

We also started to leave a light on for Eddy at night so if he dogcided to sleep in the living room he wouldn’t be in total darkness.  HuMom also gave him a double dose of Omega Alpha‘s Endurastress for several weeks & that really helped him to feel calm & more at ease at night.  Eddy still gets Edurastress when we nose a thunderstorm is coming.

 

When forstering or adopting a new furiend it is pawstively impawtant to nose that adjusting to a new enviroment can take weeks sometimes months.  Equally impawtant is that caregivers let go of expectations of being an expert.  There is always something new to learn when we open our doors & hearts to another.  Be patient with yourself & with your new furmily member.  When we can do this, the expeirence is pawfectly wagnificent even with the ups & downs.  The bond that is created is stronger because of it.

So how does one become a foster? First contact your local shelter or rescue group & fill out an application. Often this step can be done online. Next, you would be interviewed by a shelter personal . Once you’re approved you will be paired up with a dog or cat that you & the shelter staff feel would be a good fit. For example if you already have a dog & or cat then you will be matched with a dog or cat that is comfortable with other dogs or cats.

Fostering can be short or long term. Again, this will be worked out between you & the shelter staff factoring such things as, for example, the animal’s needs, your schedule or your particular skills in training or health care. Sometimes, love is in the air & the foster turns into an adoption. This is often affectionately referred to as a ‘Foster Failure’.

If you are considering becoming a foster, you should be realistic in considering what you can pawvide in regards to time, exercise & socialization for your guest. If a younger, energetic dog may be too much for you there are many senior dogs that would benefit from being fostered.

Another option would be to be a sponsor. Sponsoring is offering financial support to a specific shelter, animal or animals. Perhaps you can provide food donations for your local shelter or help pay for medical bills. Whatever you do, it’s always valued, appreciated, & helps lighten the stress for the shelter & the animal.  It’s the gift of love & compassion.

Have a pawsome week, CEO Olivia, Dot, Jerry Underfoot & Eddy💜

 

   

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