Fostering? Should I try it?

[strangeduck]

I'm home full time and so I get to love all my animals and spend time with them.  However, I'm addicted to Petfinder and Craigslist and my local animal control website.  I look at the pictures of beautiful canine faces and I wish I could bring them all home with me.  We currently have three dogs, and though room isn't really a problem, I just think three should be our limit because of vet bills and whatnot for the other animals.

However, there are always rescues looking for foster homes and they cover the costs of vet bills, we would just have to cover the cost of food.  And since I already have three dogs, I don't think adding a fourth mouth to feed would be all that big of an increase.

So, I'm batting the idea around, and I would love to hear from some of you who either are currently fostering or who have in the past.  Do the rescue organizations really cover the vet bills, how hard is it to find homes, and how hard is it to let the animals go?  Any information or opinions would be appreciated.

[Heather]

I cannot stress enough to PLEASE really review the shelter/rescue you are fostering for. Be sure they will take the dog back or switch him/her out with another foster family if s/he is not compatible with your current dogs. My only foster experience was recently with Mars, the foster dog from Hell (as we all nicknamed him). He was fighting with my dog and I could not get another foster home for him and he could not go back to the shelter because he was pretty much kennel crazy when I got him and I wasn't going to subject him to that again (not to mention once they go that way they are deemed unadoptable and put down). Rescues and shelters won't put a dog down for lack of space but they will for serious behavior problems or health issues.

Vet bills were 100% taken care of because the shelter I fostered for doubled as a vet clinic as well. My understanding is that rescues have a tab at approved clinics so you don't have to pay out of pocket and wait for reimbursement. Food was paid for as well but anything extra like chews (for teething) or toys/treats were out of my own money. It will vary the time it takes to find a home. Puppies under 6 mos go pretty fast, dogs under a year go pretty well. If you are looking to foster 6 years and up I think you will have the dog for awhile. Pups usually are adopted in 1-2 mos, alittle longer for dogs around a year old. And it will also vary on how much publicity the rescue does like adoption events, proactive things in the community like fundraisers and if they are on petfinder or not. Small ACs often aren't. Rescues and larger shelters usually are.

I really got a good feeling from fostering simply because Mars would've been put down had he stayed at the shelter, or he would've been adopted and brought back continuously because no one had the time, patience or know how to deal with his issues. And when the shelter doesn't have it under control there's no possible way the average owner will know what to do either with an out of control dog.

Kudos to you for wanting to help homeleless dogs!

[fearlessella]

I think fostering is a wonderful thing.  Heather has some good pointers and I have a few more things for you to think about. 

I know with the rescue I work with we get dogs from several different pounds/shelters.  When you bring all those dogs in from different places you take the risk of bringing in harbored viruses.  As a foster myself I have brought home possible distemper, kennel cough, parvo, and intestinal parasites.  I don't mind bringing home parvo because it vaccinates my dogs that much more.  In all the distemper and kennel cough dogs I have brought home I have never passed it to my dogs (at one time I vaccinated for Bordatella, I no longer do).  As far as parasites go I have mainly brought home coccidia.  My dogs have not gotten it.  The one parasite I have heard of people having an issue with is giardia.

All medical for rescue animals is covered.  I believe we usually cover foster's personal dogs as well.  I think fostering is great still.  I enjoy it SO much!  I wish I could do it more.  I would bring home too many though.

I find it easy in  about 99% of the dogs I foster to let them go.  I have yet to keep one yet.  A few have some close, but when I see the homes they are getting it makes it worth letting them go.

[chaa]

fostering is so rewarding, i really commend you for wanting to go ahead and open up your home to a great new face every few weeks.  I do short-term foster, which is in many ways incredibly tiresome and in other ways a lot more rewarding (nothing like a week-long break after a week of complete mayhem!).

be careful about being the 'fallback foster'.  i was picking up a pair of foster puppies and ended up taking home both those pups and a mom and 7 of her 6-day-old puppies.  *headache*  not only did mom have diarrhea, heartworm, and wasn't eating, but the puppies had to be bottlefed as well.  and i do work part-time.  but when i saw her face and heard those yelps i couldn't say no, she just couldn't go back on an 8 hour drive to a cold cage.
So know your limitations and stick with them, that's my big problem.  also... if you plan to foster dog after dog, instead of a one-off deal, it would be really great to devote a waste-proof room to the cause.  puppies dont often come in housetrained and lemmie tell you... getting loose stools out of carpet is NOT something you want to be a daily activity.

i say go for it!  fostering is the best thing I've ever done.  I've only fallen in love once, and that's hopefully ending in a successful adoption in about 8 weeks.