• August 14,2020
• 3 comments

Fostering animals is an excellent way to help your community, support nonprofit organizations, and provide love and kindness to animals that need it most. It’s also a great activity to practice with your family. If you’re interested in getting started with animal fostering, this guide can help.

Be Honest About Space

Foster animals can take up a lot of room in your home, especially if you already have other animals, so it’s important to look at the amount of space you really have before deciding how many foster animals you can take on. You don’t know how long a foster animal will be with your family before they find their forever home, so don’t block off any important rooms or walkways if you can avoid it.

It Can Be Emotional

If you’re interested in fostering animals, you have a large and open heart and that’s worth celebrating. It’s important to know, however, that fostering is an emotional experience and you’re going to have to be honest with yourself about how much you can actually take on. Older pets often need to be fostered, but there’s the possibility that they can pass while in your home, and puppies and kitties are very easy to fall in love with, which can make it difficult to say goodbye. If you don’t think you’re ready to foster, that’s okay. There are many other great ways to help the animals in your community.

Work With the Right Organization

There are many different foster organizations, so you want to do a little research and find the right organization to fit your lifestyle and expectations. If you’re interested in fostering a specific type of animal or breed, then look for organizations that cater to those pets. You’ll want to start developing your relationship with the organization early on, so they can reach out to you when you’re both ready to take the next step.

Be Upfront

There are many different ways to approach fostering, so when you begin speaking with an organization you like, be upfront about your limitations. If you can only take in cats or small dogs, let them know. Maybe you prefer to work with older animals who just need a little love. Keep the organization in the loop on what you can manage and your specific skills and interests, so you can be matched with the right foster animals.

Start Small

That’s not necessarily to say start with a small animal, though, of course, you can. Instead, you want to start with a smaller amount of responsibilities and challenges. Try to begin your fostering experience with a young, healthy animal that can get adopted easily, so you can get used to welcoming a new animal into your home, with the added responsibilities, and you won’t get too attached. Take each step at your own pace and know you’re making some very special animals feel loved and happy.

For help from professionals on pet care and pet care and fostering, Ripplequest.com can help. We make it easy to connect with experts and professionals, so begin your search right here today.