At our shelter, there are animals that we want to save, but which must be kept apart from our general animal population.
There are several reasons why we send some animals to foster care before we give them up for regular adoption. Our foster animal caregivers are experienced animal caretakers who have had, or still have, other animals. They take care of special animals that need this extra care for a while.
Here are some reasons why animals may need foster care:
- Very young puppies and kittens, even those with their mothers, are more susceptible to disease that is present in an institutional setting like an animal shelter. If these puppies and kittens can be removed from the shelter until they are ready for adoption, they are less likely to get sick.
- Some animals have behavior problems, perhaps caused by mistreatment at a previous home. Our experienced foster caretakers have rehabilitated problem animals who have gone on to become loved pets in good homes. Some behavior problems that can be changed are: fear, inappropropriate demand for attention, poor behavior on a lead, and so forth. We avoid sending aggressive animals to foster care.
- At certain times of the year, our shelter becomes overloaded with animals, since there are specific times when mating is likely to occur. Our foster families have helped us out by taking some animals out of the shelter to ease the crowding until others have been adopted, freeing space for the foster animals to return.
If you are interested in providing foster care for puppies or kittens (usually several at a time), please get in touch. You must be prepared to take care of young animals, but everyone loves kittens and puppies. You should have experience as an animal caretaker, but you do not need special training.
Your webmasters cared for a cat and her kittens in a home that already had two adult dogs. Our greatest difficulty was explaining to our 70-lb. Labrador-mix dog that he could not have a kitten for his own. He had to settle for cats (one is the mother of the kittens), but likes them also. These kittens went to good homes.
The rules that govern fostering an animal are found in our Foster Agreement.
If you think that foster care is for you, contact us. You may click on Foster Care Application to get a copy of the application to become an animal foster caretaker.
The above documents require Adobe Acrobat Reader. If you already have Acrobat Reader or Adobe Acrobat on your computer, then you may click on the above two links. If you do not have Acrobat Reader, first click the icon just below this paragraph to download and install the free reader software from Adobe, then download the agreement or application. You can call us for an appointment, and bring the completed application with you when you come to see us.