Fostering

Read this link.

http://www.hsus.org/pets/pets_related_news_and_events/becoming_a_foster_parent_041508.html

Be sure to call up the Full Article linked at the end of the article.

I have been fostering for many year and I am at the point where the house seems empty if a foster or two or three are not here.  I usually get the dogs that require rehabbing or have been mishandled and mislabeled.  In a short time, a foster will nicely fit into your family and the schedules you create.  The extra time comes in when the dog is ready to place.  This includes public showings of the dog, home visits, and phone interviews.  The most frustrating part of fostering is communication delays with the rescue organization.  Everyone involved is doing so on a voluntary basis and their priorities are different.

It depends on the rescue.  The first one I worked with in this area basically dumped a litter of pups on me and then became totally unavailable.  They finally payed for altering the pups because, thanks to no help from them in placing said pups, they were getting older and I was getting nervous.  I paid for vet checks, vaccines, worming, food, you name it.

Some will pay for absolutely everything, the better ones anyway, and will either provide the food, or give you  a food allowance if you refuse to feed what they can afford and you pay the difference.  The rescue I have been working with is excellent.  While I do the vaccines and worming myself, they pay for the supplies, the vet checks, etc, are active in placement, and while they do all the initial screening, I have final say in placement fo the pups.  When I have pups, they are born in my home and I have them for a minimum of ten weeks so I KNOW them best.  Sometimes I get older dogs, usually puppy mill rescues who are under two, for rehabbing, a bit of training, etc, and often the rescue has a specific family in mind for that dog, so I do my "job" of training, socializing, teaching them to love and be loved and send them off to their forever homes.

You need to have a VERY clear understanding with the rescue of what they expect from you, and what they will do FOR you.

Know very clearly and up front that every single dog who comes through your doors will leave with a little piece of your heart.  It can't be helped.  But also knowing that what you are doing is absolutely vital to that dogs future.

ETA:  I am not a professional trainer, nor do I claim to be.  The rescue I work with likes how I work with their dogs, and I always do the basics of potty, leash, crate training, and with some dogs more.  Some of them need to learn how to play even.  And, that breaks my heart.

The first two replies say a mouthful. Fosterers are the lifeblood of adoption.

I can only speak for the Greyhounds~ this is where they learn how to be a pet (usually a very easy transition). The difficulty often becomes giving them up! But, that is what is necessary in order to foster another.

My sincere admiration for those who can foster.......

Check with the rescue to be sure of what they will provide and exactly what they want you to do. I recommend actually asking for an easy foster to start with, just so you can get the hang of it. Be aware you could end up with fosters that are in and out in no time at all... in the past 2 years, I've actually had about 5 fosters that were adopted within a week.  Then there's the fosters that are with you for what seems a lifetime...

The rescue I work with provides the food, medical care and newspapers. (Yes, I papertrain) I drop the dog off for an adoption event and pick them up at the end of the day. I keep the rescue informed of any and all information about my foster(s). For a while I ended up fostering puppies only, be aware most rescues foster their puppies out only in pairs, minimum.

My current pup is a parvo survivor... There won't be any puppies in my house for a long time now. The rescue and I decided to treat her at home. She shows horribly at adoption events. So now we have to socialize the heck out of her and show her that other people can be wonderful too. She's gotten way too comfortable here and she's only 6 months old now.

2 of my own girls are actually 'failed fosters'. They came in as puppies and there was just no way I could let them go.

I've lost countless things that fosters have chewed... The rescue will not replace these for you. My carpet is a disaster, in spite of being bleached. I've mastered the dog bath. Even my family has learned to study the poop of a new foster. I've had fosters that the rest of the family couldn't stand. But to me, as long as my dogs accept the foster, we work on everything else.

I've had to learn what my dogs will and will not accept. Crating and rotating stressed me out, along with having to keep the dogs separated. Strangely enough, my girls prefer female fosters if they don't have puppy license. I've learned that the first week doesn't mean squat. Unless everyone's not getting along... that does not get better 'in my house' after a week. All my fosters learn to eat in a crate, they eat a different food then my girls do. Most adopters will agree to feed Nature's Recipe which is what the rescue recommends and gives me for my fosters. My girls eat better then that. I buy canned pumpkin whenever its on sale... and all the other wonderful supplements to help a fosters tummy.

Other fosters do crate and rotate and it works just fine. Others have separate areas for their fosters. It works for them.

Feel free to ask if you have any specific questions.

If you have a tiny dog, become a fosterer for a small breed rescue, and avoid the ones that serve dogs that are more than twice your dog's body weight.  Also, if you have a male, maybe make your first foster a female if you can.  You'll lower your risk of altercations while you gain experience. Read Sue Sternberg's book, "Successful Dog Adoptions".   Good primer on what makes a good match for the average adopter.