Pet Talk: Fostering cats

DEAR PET TALK: I have the time and space to foster a cat, and I am talking to a friend who wants to foster a dog. Can you help us do that?

— HOPEFUL

DEAR HOPEFUL: Bless you! Foster families are definitely needed for cats and dogs, because most animal shelters are operating at capacity most of the time.
Shelters try to adopt out dogs, cats and other pets as quickly as they can to responsible individuals and families. However, every shelter has furry residents who just get overlooked by potential adopters. Pets who are used to spending their days in human company are more likely to get bored and depressed in a shelter environment. And young dogs who are surrendered because their adopter didn’t or couldn’t spend time training them need a lot of extra attention if they arrive at a shelter at a year or two of age.

Shelter volunteers are most concerned about a furry guest who is very old or in hospice; injured and needing to recuperate; or very young, such as a litter of puppies or kittens.

Second Chance Animal Services in North Brookfield, which has a shelter and clinic explains on their “Fostering” page that “We like to get these pets out to foster homes to help them as well as to gain more information about their personality. This is also a great opportunity to get a head start on basic training (for dogs) and socialization.”

The rule of thumb is that shelters that are looking to relocate a pet from their shelter to a home will pick up the cost of medication, food and supplies during the length of the foster period.

My family has fostered cats and dogs through the years — usually on an emergency basis — and having a separate space for the pet is usually required.

Fostering can last for weeks, or months, and the term “Foster Failure” is actually a badge of honor for many of us who foster a pet who turns out to be the ideal top cat or top dog in our home.

Check out:

• Second Chance Animal Services, www.secondchanceservices.org (for dogs and cats).

• Broken Tail Rescue, www.brokentailrescue.org (for dogs and cats).

• Ahimsa Haven, www.ahimsahaven.org, (for cats)

• Pat Brody Shelter for Cats, catsontheweb.org (cats)

Also stay in touch with Street Cat Angels, streetcatangels.org, a non-profit open to volunteers in all communities. They sometimes need emergency help fostering cats who have been rescued, and are waiting to get veterinary medical care. Email: [email protected]. They also seek volunteers to assist with rescue activities.

Sally Cragin is the director of Be PAWSitive: Therapy Pets and Community Education. Send questions to [email protected].