What is fostering?
Pet fostering provides temporary care to shelter animals who need to live in a home environment prior to adoption for a variety of reasons. They could be ill mentally, emotionally, or physically. They might be mommas who need to nurse their young until they are old enough to be adopted. Sometimes they might be puppies or kittens that have lost their mom and need someone to bottle feed them. We have had these situations countless times unfortunately and there are times where we cannot find a foster home for them. Even though we try to make them feel as comfortable as possible in a shelter, it does not compare to a quiet home where someone can be with them 24/7. Being in a shelter can cause stress which is not good for the pet’s recovery.
Are you interested in fostering? Is fostering right for you?
We provide our fosters with information about the pet’s temperament and medical needs. Fosters are given essential supplies, such as food and access to veterinary care, and a 24-hour emergency number if problems arise. Pet fosters must be able to bring in said pet for vet check ups or be able to have a vital staff member come over to weigh the pets or check in and make sure everyone is in good health.
Pet fosters must remember that they are a vital, but temporary guardian to a dog or cat in need. These pets will be put up for adoption once they are ready or if you are fostering an available pet they can be adopted out at any time.
Most shelters and rescues require fosters to make the pets in their charge available for adoption events, and coordinate drop-off or pick-up of the animals for this purpose.
This does not mean there won’t be any “foster fails”. That term is used to describe when a foster falls in love with their foster pet and ends up keeping them. It isn’t a bad thing at all! If that is something that one is going through, make sure to reach out to your shelter/ rescue so you can go through the process correctly and legally adopt that pet!
When some fosters are caring for animals for an extended period of time it is natural that strong bonds develop that can lead to “foster failure”.
Why should you be a foster parent?
- Privilege of offering a needy animal a safe, comforting and supportive environment while they wait to be adopted or become healthy enough to find a furever home
- Help socialize a shelter pet to enhance his adoption potential
- Reduce the animal’s stress, which improves his adopt-ability
- Enjoy the benefits of pet ownership if you are unable to keep a full-time pet due to lifestyle or other restrictions!
While fosters often get attached to their charges, most don’t keep the foster pet and complete their task as foster parent because they recognize that another home would be a better fit and the person can continue to be a foster parent to other pets in need!
We are ALWAYS looking for fosters to sign up. We might not need a foster at the exact time you sign up but, we would love to be able to call a foster parent whenever we need one! You can just walk into the Snake River Animal Shelter to sign up or give us a call at (208) 523-4219 or email director@snakeriveranimalshelter.org if you have any questions.
If you don’t live in our area, go ahead and call the shelters/rescues in your area and ask them about their foster program!
Big thanks to this article for information on fostering.