FOSTERING QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS

Fostering is an amazing experience for individuals and each of the dogs, it gives the Dogs As Family dogs the opportunity to know what it is like to be wanted, loved and accepted as being part of a loving family.

Our foster families help each of our Dogs As Family dogs in many ways:

• Allows the dogs to feel safe and exhibit their true personalities in the home environment.
• Reduces the chances of contracting many illnesses from a kennel/shelter environment such as: kennel cough.
• Gives each dog the opportunity to work through behavioral issues with their foster parent prior to adoption like house training, separation anxiety, chewing or basic obedience skills.
• Properly fit the personality and needs of the dog with their forever home.

I'm interested in fostering but don't know if I'm a good fit.

Dogs As Family, Inc. looks for individuals with patience, compassion and a sense of humor. Rescued animals often have some behavioral issues because they weren't trained or loved in a previous home. Some dogs dig, bark, cling to you and follow you everywhere or need to be house-trained. These are all learned behaviors that can be corrected with love, patience, time and individual work.

You are not required to own your home, but if you lease your home we do require permission from your landlord even for a temporary basis.

All Dogs As Family dogs must be inside dogs. Animals are genetically bred to be companions to humans, depriving animals of human companionship causes neurotic and destructive behaviors so we provide family environments. 

What do I need to foster and is it expensive?

Each Dogs As Family dog needs a place to sleep and call their own. Beds can be a store bought animal bed, crate or a pile of blankets placed in a safe area of the home. Crates are not required but can be extremely helpful when bringing a new pet into the home until you've been able to evaluate and introduce them into your family.  Our foster families cover expenses for food, toys, treats, leashes and puppy pads. We cover all veterinarian exams and visits, current medications and heartworm preventative treatment.

I have other pets, what if they don't get along?

Dogs As Family, Inc. will work with you to evaluate and select a foster dog that will work within your family. As an example, if you have pets that don't like other male dogs, we will work to make sure we don't place male dogs into your current family. We want to make this a successful situation for everyone involved, but as a precaution we would suggest using a crate or separating the dog from others until you've been able to evaluate the new dogs behavior within your home. 

What if something happens and I can no longer foster an animal?

Unforeseen events do happen from time to time, we work with our foster families in each situation to do what is best for all involved. We ask all of our potential foster families to make the commitment wholeheartedly to accept each dog into their home as their own until a suitable forever home is found because moving around a dog that has never had their own family can be detrimental to their well-being.

What if I fall in love with my foster?

You will become attached to your foster dog, you've accepted them into your family and helped them to overcome being left and unloved by someone in their past.  We encourage our foster families to participate in our home evaluations and selection for a forever home. Of course, if you can't see yourself giving up your foster you may want to consider adoption. We always give our foster families the first opportunity to adopt before placement into another home. 

Many foster families receive comfort knowing they have been able to provide their foster the opportunity to have a loving forever home. Each dog you've helped through their journey provides space for another Dogs As Family dog the chance to find their forever home.  

I want to foster and make a difference in a dogs life!

Great! Fill out the foster application so we can find the best dog to fit into your family environment. Dogs As Family will evaluate your environment to make sure we find a great fit to introduce to your family. We will be working together and are always available to assist you when questions or needs arise. Finding a perfect forever home can sometimes take days, weeks or months but with everyone working together we will give each Dogs As Family dog the opportunity to enjoy the life of a very loved dog.