Foster

In becoming an active part of a foster care program, you are extending the shelter walls and offering the animals a new chance at healthy, happy lives in forever homes. You are helping to avoid unnecessary killing, and you are providing us with valuable information to place animals in the homes best suited for them.  Foster parents give shelter animals a place to stay in their home until they are ready for adoption.

As a foster, you agree to provide a safe area of your home (separate from existing pets, at first) for your foster to stay. You also agree to provide food, socialization and transportation to the designated medical facility for medical care and to return your foster pet to the shelter (or discuss other options with the foster/adopter specialists) when he or she is ready for adoption.

Overview

Shelters appreciate your opening your heart and home to one of their shelter’s orphaned dogs. Your generosity will provide young and old, injured, and sick, abused and under socialized dogs a chance to grow or heal before finding their forever homes.  The Foster Dog Program plays an integral part in the shelter’s ability to adopt.

A member of the shelter team usually serves as the initial point of contact for the foster family: answering questions, assisting with training issues, connecting the family with any needed supplies and services, and serving as a foster's liaison the Shelter operations. The team member also provides initial orientation for new foster families, and serves as a resource throughout the foster process, beginning with connecting the foster family with a dog in need and culminating in a successful adoption.

The New Era of Fostering: Smarter Choices, Greater Impact

Across the country, foster care programs are proving to be essential lifelines for dogs and cats in need. The 2024 survey by Maddie’s Fund® underscores how foster care has grown in both scale and importance, with more organizations embracing temporary home placements as a core component of their lifesaving strategies.

From the perspective of foster caregivers, shelter and rescue staff, volunteers, and veterinary teams, the message is clear: streamlined, well-supported foster programs transform animal outcomes. Organizations that have simplified onboarding processes have seen foster caregivers enter the system more quickly—often in less than a day—leading to significantly more pets placed in loving foster homes. The data shows a direct correlation: faster onboarding means more animals helped.

However, despite these advancements, some shelters still face significant barriers. Many struggle to recruit foster caregivers, operate with insufficient staff, face financial constraints, or carry lingering liability concerns. These obstacles can stall progress, but the survey makes clear that targeted improvements in training, communication, and digital engagement can overcome these challenges.

One of the most critical insights from the 2024   is the effect of application requirements. Shelters requiring home visits, in-person evaluations, or meetings with household members saw steep drops in foster caregiver enrollment and pet placements. While well-intentioned, overly restrictive processes can limit lifesaving potential. Programs that reduce these barriers—without compromising safety—see broader community involvement and stronger foster rosters. In many cases, a virtual home visit can serve as a suitable and efficient alternative, helping to ensure basic safety while preserving accessibility for potential caregivers.

Just as important is how shelters and rescues promote their programs. The survey found that social media is one of the strongest predictors of foster care success. Organizations posting frequently—and specifically mentioning foster pets—on Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok placed significantly more animals into homes. These platforms are no longer optional—they are essential tools for connection and visibility.

To build on this momentum, we recently discussed with Maddie’s® University and one of their national trainers an innovative strategy to increase visibility and adoption rates: monthly, scheduled online adoption events featuring foster pets. These virtual events give caregivers the opportunity to present their foster animals live from their homes, allowing potential adopters to see the pet’s real personality in a familiar environment.

The response from Maddie’s® and the trainer was enthusiastic—they felt the concept was both practical and timely, and noted that it could be a particularly effective tool for animals that may otherwise be overlooked. They emphasized that showcasing pets in a home setting, paired with ongoing digital outreach, aligns with best practices in marketing and adopter engagement.

Whether it’s a cat curled up peacefully in a sunny window or a dog happily interacting with toys or people, these presentations provide a window into what life with that animal might actually look like. This format not only reduces stress for the animal, it also builds trust with potential adopters—something that can be harder to achieve in a noisy shelter setting.

Even better, the livestreams can be recorded and replayed at in-person adoption events or shown on screens during open hours at shelters—maximizing exposure and increasing the chance of adoption.

But to truly succeed in this new era of fostering, we must also rethink where we direct our efforts.

Many foster homes today are being used for out-of-state puppies, brought in by transport organizations. While these puppies are often highly adoptable, the unfortunate reality is that they displace local shelter animals who need foster care the most. According to Maddie’s Fund®, most shelters still place less than half of their dogs in foster care, largely because they lack enough volunteers and foster homes. When foster spots are filled with puppies from transport programs, senior dogs, longer-stay pets, and those with minor medical or behavioral needs are left behind—and sometimes lose their lives as a result.

This is not about blame. It’s about informed choices.

Fostering a dog from your local shelter doesn’t just help one pet—it helps the entire system. It relieves overcrowding, reduces euthanasia risk, and gives overlooked pets a real chance at adoption.

The new era of fostering is here. It’s smarter. It’s strategic. And it’s local.

✅ Choose to foster from your municipal or county shelter
✅ Say yes to the animals who truly need you
✅ Be part of a movement that saves lives where it matters most

Fostering isn’t just a feel-good act anymore—it’s a powerful tool for change.

Types of Fosters

  • Traditional Fostering: This is where you select an animal, and it stays at your house and you help find its forever home.
  • Behavior Fostering: These animals need a little more help in learning to become the perfect house` guest. Their areas of opportunity can range anywhere from just needing to learn how to reacclimate to living in a house to maybe they don’t get along with another species of animal and need to be kept separated from them.
  • Short Term Fostering: Daytrips, Overnights or set period of times. You don’t need months to make a difference. Even weekend or week-long fostering gives shelter dogs a much-needed break from the kennel, lowers stress, and helps staff learn more about their personality.  Come up and take a dog out for lunch, maybe have it spend the night in your house or even just a week or two! Studies have shown any time away from the shelter really helps reduce an animal's stress levels and reduced stress levels helps an animal be more adoptable! This also helps shelters market the animal (with your photos) and learn more about its home personality.

  • Medical Fostering: Animals with medical needs. These animals may be recuperating from surgery, treatments, or any other variety of medical needs.

  • Safety Net Fostering

    Safety Net is a temporary program that helps families facing a crisis that prevents them from being able to care for their pets. Safety Net fostering is guaranteed short term with the maximum amount of time being only 90 days. Since these are owned animals, there is usually a history on their personalities and preferences. They also will have little to no medical needs and minimal behavioral concerns. And there is no need to market for adoption since they are going back home at the end of their stay. It’s just like pet sitting! This is a great program for new fosters looking to gain experience or experienced fosters looking for an easy, short-term foster.

  • Short-term foster: Day Trips and Pawjama Parties!

    A Day Trip with a pet can look like a long hike or even just a drive around town. A Pawjama Party is a one-night foster stay, which has been proven to reduce pets' stress levels. Both options come with tons of cuddles and a pet who is grateful for a break from the shelter!