Fostering & small children

[Astraia]

My husband and I have fostered with dog rescues in the past and really enjoyed it. We met a variety of awesome animals and gave them a chance they might not have otherwise had. Usually they were very good, calm animals (of course, we tended to get adult dogs so that was probably related).

We have recently been toying with the idea of fostering again. It has to be a dog because our cat does not play well with other cats. We have a dog who is very sociable and good with other dogs.

We also have two young kids. Both are good with dogs and gentle. We have family with young and rambunctious dogs and they've been exposed to that and seem to handle it well enough as well.

Would you consider fostering with young children? Would a rescue even consider us since we have babies in the house? I'm not sure how the foster system even works (I know, how weird is that?)-do they meet all these dogs before placing them? Could they just send us the non-puppies or something like that?

I'd love to have your thoughts on this.

I emailed the local SPCA last week and haven't gotten a reply- either due to time constraints, disinterest, or my total lack of French. Not sure.

[Astraia]

No one has an opinion?

I'm sure this area doesn't get a lot of traffic, so I'm just given this a wee bump

[Breathless Wonder]

Hmmm... I don't know if I would start fostering with kids that young, BUT... it really depends on the organization you are working with. I am currently pregnant, and will need to decide if we are going to take a hiatus from fostering ourselves. But, I'll share my experience anyway...

When we began fostering, we had to fill out an extensive form detailing our past experience, dog breeds we'd owned/ dealt with extensively, etc. We also were allowed to put down what breeds we would NOT foster, as well as what characteristics we would return a dog to the foster coordinator for. We were asked about children and other pets in the home, so that, for example, the foster coordinator didn't give us anything with a high prey drive (we have cats and guinea pigs). AND- everything comes to us fully vetted. I know some rescue organizations don't work that way. If it arrives on my door step, it has had a rabies shot, the shot for parvo, the shot for kennel cough, been given dewormer, and topical flea treatment as well as heartworm prevention. I think that is everything... My DH and I have both TRANSPORTED unvetted animals, but not ever with the kids in the car.

So far, we've had good luck with our fosters. It probably doesn't hurt that I've known our coordinator personally for years, so she knows us well enough to know what dogs would be an okay fit in our home.

So I would say, get the paperwork, and look it over.

And if the fostering doesn't look like it will work out right now, consider the other ways you can help-
~ Transport (ALWAYS needed!!!) If we are traveling a distance, we always check in to see if any dogs need to head the way we are going.
~ Assist with a low cost spay / neuter clinic (getting the word out, helping load the animals if they need to be transported from a gathering point to the clinic, helping keep the animals and paperwork organized, etc.)
~ Become a dog walker / petter at your local shelter
~ Donate food, beds, collars, leashes, etc. to your local shelter or rescue
~ If you or your DH have special skills, see if the rescue or shelter can use them. My DH maintains the computers for the organization we work with. I have a lot of animal related connections, so I am constantly trying to find new organizations for us to work with, who will take breed specific rescues, or take some of our animals by transport (we live in a high kill area, with a very small, crappy shelter)
~ Volunteer to help at Adopt-A-Thons or booth events
~ See if your shelter or rescue keeps a lost pet log/ board, and volunteer to help with that.
~ See if there is currently an pending legislation or decisions to vote on that need to be promoted.

The list is endless, and a call to your local shelter/ rescue organizations might turn up a need they have, that you didn't think of, and might be able to help with!

[Astraia]

Thanks for your response! I've been meaning to reply to this but kept forgetting.

When we fostered.... maybe I'm not remembering details correctly, but I don't remember filling out any paper work. I went down to "look at" the dogs and talk it over, and before I quite knew what was happening I was leaving with a dog in my trunk.

The place we fostered with before doesn't appear to exist any more, so I'll look at different rescues and have some serious discussions with them before we decide anything. I'm giving up on the SPCA here, I'm having trouble getting through to anyone and I'm just not determined enough to pursue it.

You have a lot of excellent suggestions about other ways to help. I don't think we can commit to transport with two little kids and DH weird work hours. We also live 30+ minutes from every rescue/shelter, so going to do dog walking or volunteer work isn't really feasible either.

When I talk to a rescue (one I pick one!) I'll see if there are other ways we can help out. I always forget about the financial aspect of things- vetting, toys, food, etc so DH and I are talking that over as well.

I like the idea of fostering more than donating money because it would FEEL like I'm doing something useful. Money donated doesn't really leave me feeling useful or connected, you know? Plus I love dogs and wouldn't mind having another personality in the house.

Thanks for your suggestions.

[Breathless Wonder]

You're welcome Astraia!

The suggestions I offered are just the tip of the ice berg. There are so MANY ways you can help! I understand your limitations regarding distance, etc. I'm just going to throw a few more things out there for you to consider:

I know you said you can't take cats, but shelters often get small animals (hamsters, rats, ferrets, rabbits, guinea pigs, etc.) or small farm animals (pot bellied pigs, pygmy goats, etc.) as well, which take, time, resources, and space from the dogs and cats. Plus, the shelter staff is frequently not knowledgable about "exotic" animals, and may not be equipped to provide proper care. Just a little more food for thought, and another way you can help.

We also have people that do Trap, Neuter, Release for cats, which is less expensive than the cats ending up in the shelter or foster care.

I like the idea of fostering more than donating money because it would FEEL like I'm doing something useful. Money donated doesn't really leave me feeling useful or connected, you know? Plus I love dogs and wouldn't mind having another personality in the house.

I understand this as well. If you have experience with or are willing to learn more about a particular breed, breed specific rescue can be wonderful. I find the placements tend to be more "long term" than general dog rescue, which might be a good match for you right now.

You could also consider helping start a free or low cost obedience class in your area. Many dogs are returned for behavior issues, so helping set a good obedience foundation might help decrease the number of dogs ending up in the shelter, AND you could get your dog fix.

I just want to remind you though that most organizations can't operate and pull dogs at all with out the financial donations. In our area at least, when the money gets low, and the places to transport dwindles, more animals get put to sleep. And the ones in care get only the basics, and no extras (toys, treats, etc.), unless the foster family wants to pay out of pocket. The thinking is do right by a few dogs than half the job for a lot of dogs.

Our rescue also does a food pick up program, to help keep animals in families that are experiencing (hopefully) short term financial difficulty, and they offer vouchers for basic vet care based one need, and other criteria. Sometimes someone will make a large donation, and we can offer waived adoption fees, free shot clinics, reduced fee shot clinics, or low cost or free spay/neuter.

We also recently got a grant through our local Hospice service which allows us to foster and place animals that are surrendered by the ill or the elderly.

Another thing you might look into is seeing if you can help form partnerships with other groups in the community. We have a school that sponsors a few animals each year, and we run educational programs for their students. I know we bring dogs and cats in for them, and I think we also "loan" small animals for class rooms on a limited basis. We have a few people that do community outreach with the "exotics" at local festivals, etc. and get some funding from the Chamber of Commerce and other businesses. We also have a small, independant pet shop that has started taking some of our kittens, and 1 or 2 adult cats at a time. He lets the adult cats wander the store. He's adopted out over 20 cats in 6 months! Those are excellent numbers for our cats here! In 2007, 18% of the cats that came through the shelter/ ASPCA/ Humane Society found homes. 82% were euthanized.

Good luck with everything, and I hope you find a good match for your family!

[Eman'smom]

We foster

Before the birth of our 3rd child we fostered with one group. We now foster with another.

We only do kittens and puppies. Mainly because the other animals in the house adapt well to the little babies and I know the cats wouldn't do well with anothe adult cat.


Anyway alot depends on the group you are fostering with. For example our group won't let people with children under 6 foster small breed dogs, because they won't adopt to them.

We get to choose when and who we foster. Our kids are currently 9,6 and 2 and they love it and do wonderfully.