If you’ve ever thought about fostering a dog or cat but didn’t know how to get started, some new resources are available to help.
Our friends at Greater Good Charities, whose mission is protecting people, pets, and the planet, have created two websites to educate people about what fostering is about, where they can volunteer, and helpful resources for foster parents.
The two websites are:
- fidofoster.org for dogs
- felinefoster.org for cats
Greater Good saw a need for foster resources when it ran #StayHomeAndFoster initiative last year, which signed up more than 100,000 foster parents in the wake of COVID-19. Record numbers of people have volunteered to foster and adopted pets for the first time during the pandemic.
Fostering is enriching for volunteers and pets alike:
- Fostering saves homeless pets’ lives, as it keeps them out of shelters where they may be euthanized.
- Fostering is a more humane way for a pet to live during the transition period between a past family and their new forever future, as opposed to a noisy shelter.
- By providing a safe and stable environment for a pet, foster families help pets begin to heal from any physical or emotional trauma, making them better pets.
- Fostering creates space in a shelter for another pet in need and helps rescuers learn as much as possible about a pet to make a great match for their new home.
- For foster parents, it’s an opportunity to have pets around without the long-term commitment. Many rescues also give their foster parents the first chance at adopting the pet.
“The goal is to make the country ‘fluent in foster’ by demystifying the fostering process for humans, and helping shelters implement scalable foster programs,” said Lesley McCave, corporate and foundation relations officer.
Both websites allow people to apply to become an emergency foster, and applicants will be matched with shelters or rescues in their area that need foster pet parents. There are also resources for rescues that want to start a foster program.
The sites contain lots of expert advice on how to train and care for foster or adopted pets, marketing tips for finding them a forever home, as well as fun contests and inspirational stories.
