As a pet foster, you give a deserving cat or dog the focused attention it needs outside of a shelter environment. Foster homes are important because they help alleviate stress on the shelter’s capacity, staff, and resources. Fosters provide invaluable information about an animal’s temperament and training, making it easier to match the animal with an appropriate FURever home.

The shelter provides you with food, a crate, litter pan, collar, leash, harness and record forms. Medical care includes worming, vaccinations, flea treatments, spay/neuter services, routine medical treatments, and contacts for emergency medical treatment.

All animals in foster care are reviewed by a veterinarian or medical team on a regular basis. During these visits, the animal is evaluated for general improvement and growth. The Shelter Manager or medical team determines the intervals of the reviews. As a foster care provider, you are required to keep records on the progress of your foster animal and of procedures done at home, such as worming and flea treatments.

As a foster, you can give temporary care to pregnant animals and their newborn offspring until they're old enough to be spayed or neutered. You can care for animals who are recovering from an illness, injury, or surgery. There are special needs animals such as diabetics, cats with FIV, etc. who need fostering. Animals who are so shy or traumatized that they need to receive extra attention in a quiet, low stress environment do well in foster homes.  

Interested in providing hospice care? Hospice care providers are a special group of foster volunteers who give end-of-life care for terminally ill shelter animals. Hospice is for animals diagnosed by a veterinarian with a life-limiting, non-contagious illness. While these animals are not in pain and their symptoms can be appropriately managed, their medical condition and poor prognosis limit their chances for adoption. Hospice foster care provides an opportunity for them to spend their final days, living in dignity and comfort.

If you'd like to be a foster care provider, you'll need to complete both Volunteer and Foster applications. We'll review these applications and contact you. You'll meet with staff for an orientation session. You'll also need to provide proof that your own animals have been altered and have current vaccinations.

Click here to fill out the Volunteer Application

Click one of the boxes below to complete the Foster Application.