FOSTER A PET
Fosters provide a temporary home for a dog or cat until they can be adopted. A foster home is a less stressful environment than a shelter kennel, no matter how much we take good care of them. Dogs in shelter kennels may not show their true personalities; they can become withdrawn or reactive due to stress. Placing dogs or cats with temporary families, allows us to learn more about their character and traits, so we can match them with the best adoptive home.
Foster homes need to provide a safe and loving environment where the dog will learn obedience, house manners, socialisation skills etc, before being adopted in their forever home. By signing up to our Foster Program, you express an interest in offering one of our animals, temporary accommodation, until they are adopted by their new family. Fostering plays a vital part in the rehabilitation of our animals and significantly increases their chance of finding a permanent home.
If you are interested in becoming a Foster parent, you need to complete an application process. This helps us ensure that foster families are responsible, committed and up for the challenge of fostering.
The application process has four steps:
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Submit an online application form
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A member of the Foster Team will contact you in order to help decide if the foster program is a good fit for you
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A volunteer will visit your home to ensure it is a safe environment for a dog and will allocate the best animal that suits your daily routine
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If accepted, you will sign a contract and we’ll start looking for your first foster dog!
WHY FOSTER
Animal companionship without the expense.
Pet ownership is a huge financial commitment for 10+ years. Not everyone is in a position to make that commitment. When you foster, all costs relating to food, supplies, training and veterinary care are taken care of by the rescue. By fostering you will save the life of two animals, the one you foster and the one that will take its place in the shelter!
Improve your handling and training skills
Every dog has something they are working on. It could be leash walking, house training, recall, separation anxiety or resource guarding. As a foster, you will be exposed to many dogs and cats with different training needs. With our guidance, you’ll learn to correct many of these behavioural issues and become a more confident and competent dog or cat handler.
Deciding to adopt
Many people use fostering as a chance to assess what it’s like having a dog or a cat in the house. Adding a pet to your family can create a huge lifestyle change, so it’s wise to know what you’re getting yourself into. We must stress though, that this cannot be the only reason you want to foster. Foster families should have the main goal of helping dogs and cats.
Help homeless dogs and cats
The best reason to foster! By fostering, you give a homeless dog or cat a chance at a good life. You may be showing them the first bit of love and kindness they have ever known.
Full capacity Shelter
Our shelter is often full. Being able to place some of our animals in foster care, means we are able to take in a larger number of animals in need. Animals recovering from an injury or a disease are in need of special care and love, as is the case for newborn puppies and kittens, in need of regular bottle - feeding. Many of our animals are unable to adjust to a shelter environment and are overcome by stress and fear of humans as a result.