PawPost Issue 7
The Fun of Fostering
Do you have a rescue shaped whole in your heart? Do you have a bit of extra room in your home? Are you not able to commit to owning a pet for life? Dont worry we have the solution for you. Fostering. With the upcoming holidays upon us its the perfect time to show a homeless animal some love and fill your heart and home with joy at the same time.
Australia has the second highest euthanasia rates in the world and each year over 200,000 healthy cats and dogs are sadly put down because they had nowhere to go. Our nationwide community of 800+ rescue groups and shelters rely heavily on the kindness of pet lovers to help save lives by opening their homes to a homeless pet until a permanent family is found.
For young singles, couples and retirees whose lifestyle doesn’t suit adoption, or families with space for just one more pet, fostering is a great way to help homeless pets, help your community and enjoy all the unconditional love a rescue pet brings.
There are several possible reasons that an animal is looking for a foster home:
Foster care can help save a dog’s life when shelter's are full
Some dogs don’t do well in a kennel environment because they are frightened or need a little extra care
Newborn puppies needing to be nursed or bottle-fed usually require foster care
Some dogs need time to recover from an illness or injury before adoption
Whatever the reason, these animals need some extra love and care before they can be adopted. Providing foster care for a few days, weeks, or months can be a lifesaving gift.
You’ll be surprised just how easy and rewarding it can be!
What will I get out of it I hear you asking, well according to petrescue.com.au below are just a few things you can experience as a foster carer
You’re rescuing a homeless pet that may otherwise be killed at the pound if a temporary or permanent home is not found for them. By opening your home to foster a pet, you will be helping to reduce the pound kill rate in your community and take Australia another step closer to a future where no pet is killed due to homelessness.
You’re providing a safe and nurturing environment for a pet that’s in desperate need of a second chance. Foster pets are healthy and treatable pets who just need a comfortable place to stay for a while, and to be shown a little love and kindness to help them feel safe, or to recover from injury or illness.
You’re creating a happy, adoptable pet that’s able to adapt easily to life in a family home. Foster caring allows a much smoother transition when the pet is placed into his new home. As you can imagine, being kept in a pound or shelter can be very stressful and traumatic for many animals. In your home, they can feel safe and secure. They can be nurtured, exercised and socialised - all of which will help them adapt more easily to family life when they do find their forever home.
You’re helping to ease the strain on local rescue shelters. Every week, hundreds of companion animals end up in shelters and pounds through no fault of their own. Many shelters and rescue groups rely on networks of compassionate foster carers to provide a temporary home for pets that they would not otherwise be able to save, due to limited space. In fact, more than 70% of the pets listed on the PetRescue.com website are in pet foster care and the more foster carers our rescue groups and shelters can reach out to, the more lives they can save in your local community.
You can ‘try before you buy’. Fostering is a great opportunity for you to see if a particular pet, or type of pet (small dog, large dog, cat, rabbit or other pet) is the right fit for your family and lifestyle.
It makes you the most awesome parent. When you foster a pet, you’re teaching your kids a valuable lesson in being compassionate, caring and giving others a second chance.
You can share your life with every kind of pet. You and your family can experience the joy of sharing your life and home with many different types and sizes of pets, big dogs, little dogs, cats, rabbits, birds and more.
You’ll make more friends. As well as making a new furry friend every time you foster, if you foster a dog you’ll find lots of people want to come over and say hi to you and your foster friend. It’s a great way to get to know more people in your local community.
It’s a more flexible way of having a pet in your life. You can choose to foster at a time that’s convenient for you and your lifestyle. Perhaps, you’re not ready to commit to owning a pet, but you can commit to looking after a pet for a few months. Although, it’s important to note that the time you have your foster pet can vary from just a week to several months, depending on how long it takes to find the perfect forever home.
You can enjoy all the unconditional love a rescue pet brings.
So what does fostering involve you ask? If you think you can commit to an average of three months in order to foster a pet in need, you are what rescue organisations across the country are looking for! The average time for an animal in care is much less than this but in certain curcumstances you should prepared for him/her to be in care for a bit longer. Generally all vet costs are covered and booked in by the rescue group. Flea and worming treatments if needed are also generally covered by the rescue group. Commonly, foster carers are asked to donate the cost of feeding their charge for the duration of their stay. If possible, foster carers are usually asked to provide transport to and from vet appointments. Essentially, you will need to treat the animal as you would your own pet while he/she is in your home.
Most rescue organisations offer support and advice whilst you are a foster carer – lets face it they hope you will want to foster again (and again!)
What happens if the animal is not a good fit to your household? Rescue groups don’t pressure foster carers to take animals that they are not comfortable taking as this would be stressful to both the carer and the foster pet. If your charge is not fitting into your home the rescue organisation will fing an alternate carer for the animal and try to match you with another animal better suited to your circumstances
Ok sounds good, what next? Contact a local rescue group (we have listed a couple below) to discuss what you need to be involved in helping to save lives.
Just a very small selection to get you started Auswide - PetRecue or your local RSPCA
QLD - Animal Welfare League QLD
NSW - Maggie's Rescue
VIC - Pets Haven Foundation
TAS - Dogs' Homes of Tasmania
SA - SA Dog Rescue
WA - Desperate for Love Dog Pond Rescue
NT - Darwin Animal Rescue
Video of the Month - Revenge
With the weather warming up many a dog is getting sprayed with the hose, watch as this dog gets some revenge on his owner
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