With the shelters rescues and other dog facilities being overran, full and at maximum capacity. Euthanize ation is not a choice that any of us wants to consider in my opinion it’s really not an option if you were euthanizing for space. I am a fan of no kill shelters and rescues of course as most dog advocates are.
What’s the answer if we do not want to euthanize for space? Of course doing what we can as individuals. Fostering is a good option if you have room space time and other resources. The thing about fostering is people jump in without knowing the whole truth. You hear it’s free to Foster! Of course they’re not going to charge you to foster a dog that would be silly. I think sometimes people get caught up in the bright shiny aspect of fostering saving a life doing good and of course these rescues and shelters want us to foster. So they make it seem glamorous easy and some thing that anyone can do.
Do not get me wrong I think if you can Foster definitely do it it’s rewarding, it saves lives and it really is one of the options to get us out of this mess of too many dogs in facilities. So I do believe fostering is a great thing!Do not get me wrong I think if you can Foster definitely do it it’s rewarding, it saves lives and it really is one of the options to get us out of this mess of too many dogs in facilities. So I do believe fostering is a great thing!not to mention it helps a dog get used to a home rather than a facility and of course it’s going to set them up for success when they get their permanent forever home.
There are a lot of things to consider when you decide to foster. A lot of little things that no one mentions. Of course it is not easy anything that’s rewarding and vital to survival is not going to usually be easy. The thing is I think there could be some things that are set up ahead of time to make fostering a better decision for those who actually can and want to do it and maybe suggest that other people help out in other ways.
The biggest thing is the financial aspect. No most of the time as a foster you’re not going to pay veterinarian bills. You are not going to be expected to pay out huge expenses. The thing is some organizations expect you to pay for the food for your fosters. A lot of them do not but that is definitely something you need to check into before you agree.
A lot of time and in my experience the agencies expect you to pay small expenses that at the time probably do not seem huge but overtime especially if you foster on a constant basis or have a long-term Foster can definitely add up. Five to 10 $ here and there consume quickly calculate up to $100.
Example, leashes and collars. Now, if you already have a dog you probably have an extra leash but a collar or harness you might not have on hand. Every dog is a different size so it’s hard to have a host of different sizes at one time. Yes some organizations do provide these types of things but it might take time and you need those things immediately.
Let’s talk about dog food yes most rescues provide dog food but if there’s a case where the dog needs a special diet or wet food when all you have is dry. Usually food at rescues and shelters is donated so they really do not have the choice of what they have on hand. I mean usually they’ll get you what you need but again it might take time or they might want you to purchase it and then reimburse you which also takes time and you have to have the money on hand to do that.
Let’s talk about travel expenses. A lot of time do you have to travel to pick up the dog you have to travel to take it back to the shelter or rescue. You might have to travel to veterinarian appointments, to meet and greets, adoption events, lots of other things.with rising gas prices this might be difficult not to mention if you have a job or other other locatio obligations. I mean can you afford to take the time off work? Do you have the time to devote to all these appointments and you know how veterinary appointments can take time. Not to mention if the rescue or shelter is using spay neuter clinics or low-cost veterinarians they might be in out-of-the-way locations. Which takes more time and gas.

Another expense that I did not think about was crates, puppy pads, stain and odor remover. Things like that sometimes you might have those on hand but crates are not cheap, and a lot of times people don’t have extra ones.


Parasites
Most dogs that come from negative situation and have some sort of parasite whether it’s a skin infection, fleas, ticks or worms sometimes all of the above. Number one the dog needs to be treated hopefully the rescue or shelter is paying for that. Another thing is you run the risk of your pets or home getting infected with the parasites. I would advise the dog have parasite prevention on before coming into your home.
One other thing that was not a problem for me but might be a problem for some people is what if your foster dog is destructive. You run therisk of some of your items in your home getting destroyed. I have never had this happen because I had good management skills but it is definitely something you need to think about.
One big problem I had was although I was with rescues that normally did a lot of dog testing and making sure all dogs entered into the rescue were safe with other dogs. Thingswe’re not always as they seemed. A dog in a shelter or a short term environment does not usually show its true colors. Just like people there’s a honeymoon period. A lot of the dogs that I ended up having in my home were aggressive toward my pets. Which of course made me take a step back from fostering. I recommend making sure your foster/shelter does dog testing. If there’s any chance that you feel that somethings not right with your dogs and Foster definitely advocate for your pets. in fact I would let your own dog meet your foster before you bring it home.
Make sure that the organization that you were fostering through provides support. Mentors, people you can talk to you about any problem you’re having. If they are a hands off organization that offers very little training and support for their fosters find a new organization.
I have fostered through several organizations. I wanted to try out different ones to see what is best. I’ve worked with rescues I’ve worked with shelters. Personally they both have their plus and minuses.
Shelters in my experience and this is only my experience were more hands off not as much support. They didn’t have as many rules and they were very comfortable with letting you choose the dog that you felt was best for your home.
Unfortunately in my situation the shelter dogs did not have very much medical care at all. A lot of times they did not have all their vaccinations, they didn’t have the medical care they needed. They often had parasites. On the other hand they were very good with giving you food and supplies that you needed to take care of the dogs because they had those things on hand.there were not as many traveling expenses basically picking up the dog and taking it back. Unfortunately they didn’t provide medical care so there was no medical appointments to take the dogs to. Which was kind of sad.
The rescues were better they provided more support. The dogs had excellent medical care. They saw to every need medically that the dog had. There were a lot of travel expenses because they expected you to take the dogs to all appointments. You did not have the dogs infoster as long because they moved them out pretty quickly, no parasites. But lots of expenses on little things because they did not have as many supplies on hand so you were expected to get things and be reimbursed or white long periods of time until they can get you what you need or travel long distances to get supplies that were donated. They al you need it. They also worked on volunteer basis only so some things were not as finely tuned as in a shelter. A lot of things were changed or modified as they went. You were expected to do and be more at a rescue just because everyone’s volunteers and doing the best they could. I guess there was a lot more pressure. Also so many people that work through rescues are used to spending out money out of their own pocket for a little things and big things some of that is usually expected even of the fosters. I will add these are my experiences, some places might be different and of course every place is different these are just some concerns that I would definitely address with any place you were trying to foster through. if I would’ve known these things I think I would’ve addressed them myself. Not to mention some places have transport people that’s all they do is transport dogs from here to there so some of these things can be avoided but just make sure if you’re unwilling and able to transport that your rescue or shelter has these things available sometimes they do.
Vacation. Make sure you have your vacations planned out in a way that you can let your fostering organization know ahead of time. So many times I’ve saw people going on vacation and scrambling to figure out a place for a foster. In fact when I was fostering I had a cut off time where I would not take a Foster before my vacation so I didn’t cause any stress on the rescue/shelter.
If after careful consideration you figure fostering is not for you for whatever reason. It could be also your living situation. Not every living situation is conducive to fostering and that’s OK. You can donate. Food, time, cash. You can transport that as a vital part of rescue whether it’s transporting to rescue, from rescue to veterinary appointments. That is another huge need that doesn’t take as much time.There are so many different ways you can help out fostering is not the only way.
Paws of Happiness 