BECOMING A FOSTER CARE PARENT
How You Can Make A Difference
Fostering a homeless animal is one of the most rewarding aspects of animal rescue work. Foster parents are the backbone of any good, successful organization. Each and every one of us in the rescue world got our start by opening our hearts and homes to an orphaned animal in need until a permanent, loving home could be found. Fosters provide the stabilization, security and tender-loving-care needed so that a rescued animal receives the second chance it so deserves.
Unlike shelters that house their animals in cages, those of in rescue who work out of foster care only provide the best insight possible to a potential adopter about the animal’s overall health, personality and temperament. It goes without saying, that working one-on-one this way with our animals ensures that the likelihood of an animal being returned is greatly reduced. Fostering isn’t for everyone, as it requires commitment, but for those of us who do it, there are no words to describe the sense of satisfaction in knowing you have saved a life. Our cats and kittens don’t ask for much…just regular meals, fresh water, some play time but most of all they beg us for love, understanding and patience in helping them through a sometimes difficult transition in their lives. All of us rescuers know that we have “adopted” more than our share of fosters, but we also know our limitations, in that in order to save the next kitty, we must part with our foster animals when the purr-fect home is found. The sense of satisfaction in seeing that animal go to a loving, permanent home far outweighs the “heart tugs” each time one of our “kids” leaves our care. It is in this spirit of giving that we in rescue find such profound satisfaction.
The most difficult word in our vocabulary is NO. To have to say no to in- taking a stray is devastating, but we are limited and need your help more than you know. We have been blessed in our tireless efforts in finding wonderful homes for the animals who have come our way, but we can do so much more with additional foster homes. Kitten season is the worst and to see stray mommies and newborns left on the street is heartbreaking. Imagine how many more animals could be saved with just 5 more foster homes? Our rescue takes care of all the veterinary expenses while our animals are in foster care. We have four participating veterinary practices, including an emergency 24-hour hospital that care for our animals. There are no endless phone calls or “chains of command” involved in getting a foster the veterinary care it needs, especially in an emergency. Most fosters, to help defray costs, provide food and litter, but we will get you started. We work side by side with new fosters and share our experience and knowledge to help make this a most positive experience. It really doesn’t take much…just a big heart, a spare room and the desire to make a difference in one animal’s life. The joy we gain from this work is both priceless and precious. We ask that you think about it and let us share that joy with you…we are depending on you, but not nearly as much as the untold numbers of homeless animals for whom we speak!
Email Our Foster Care Coordinator, Aimee Meyenberg, at lesterbelly210@gmail.com if you have any questions or would like to discuss becoming a foster parent.
