Fostering Saves Lives

Fostering Saves Two Lives, The Dog You Foster And The Dog Who Is Able To Take It's Place At The Rescue

Fostering a dog from Cortez Rescue and Outreach actually saves two lives at once. It saves the dog you welcome into your home (and heart) and it also saves a dog who is in need, who now has a spot in our rescue (instead of being turned away due to lack of space.)

It's truly incredible to watch the transformation a dog goes through when they move from a shelter situation to a Foster home environment. Foster homes are a dogs preparation for adoption and an important step in getting adopted. Foster homes truly are the FRONT LINE for these dogs and a critical step in saving lives!

A foster home provides a temporary living situation for dogs while they are awaiting placement in a permanent home. Foster families provide shelter, food (provided), exercise, care, love, and guidance. The number of dogs we can save depends entirely on the number of people who will open their homes and hearts to foster them. For some of these dogs, this will be their first experience being treated as a family pet. You are their salvation and you should never underestimate the important role you are playing in their lives!

Apply Here To Become A Foster For A Dog In Need

Fostering Is So Rewarding

Being a foster family has rewards beyond the essential value of helping a pet in need find a new home. For some, it is a chance to have an dog companion without making a lifetime commitment, or to try new companions for an existing pet. For others it's a chance to find their new best friend without committing to adoption immediately. Foster Care is so critical to our rescue efforts and truly help these dogs more easily transition to their new permanant home when adopted.

It's easy math, the more Foster homes we have, the more dogs we can save. Becoming a foster family is a very rewarding experience, and can be a lot of fun. There are often tears shed when a foster finally finds a home of their own, but knowing you have saved a life and opened up space to save another is truly rewarding.

Fostering Guidelines

Foster Welcome Letter

Fostering Guidelines

Decompression & How To Best Handle It

All of us in Animal Rescue know the importance of decompression. However many new fosters aren’t familiar with this concept and it is so very important.

Most people wanting to return their foster dog express their dogs behavior concerns within the first 72 hours of bringing them home and, unfortunately, are ready to give up and return them. This can be traumatic for both the dog and the foster family.

Remember that by the time you take a new dog into your home as a foster, it has gone through a world of change. Some of these dogs have been surrendered to the Rescue. They were living a life in a home, they went for a car ride with their family and suddenly they are trapped in a tiny kennel at a shelter surrounded by strange people, strange sounds, and strange smells.

Some of these dogs are strays that got lost and couldn’t find their way home. Some are street dogs that have never had a home and have no idea they want one.

They are absolutely terrified when they arrive at the Rescue. The rescue or adopter is there to save them but the dogs don’t know that. We load them up in vans and cars and we drive them across town. They go to the veterinarian and more strange people stick them with needles and put them through strange tests. More new people, new sounds, and new smells.

If this was a person they would be absolutely shut down and seeking help. The dogs on the other hand are expected to know when and where to potty, what they can and can’t chew on, sleep quietly in a new kennel, and to be appropriately socialized when meeting new friends. For some dogs, they make the transition ok. Others make so many doggy mistakes and then they get dumped right back in a scary shelter environment because they take longer to adjust. Then we start the process all over again with them.

Unfortunately for the dogs people forget that they can’t talk. The dogs bark, they cry, they howl, they growl; they try to express their concerns in doggy language. They don’t know what we want. They have to be taught what we want. They aren’t perfect dogs. Many are broken, some are just bruised, but all need you and your loving patience and support.

Fostering isn’t always pretty, it isn’t always clean, but it is always worth it. It’s our job to love them and train them. Give them the decompression time that they deserve so they can do what they do best, love you.

(Shared from Laura Berg)

What if I Need Help with My Foster Dogs Behavior??

Consider Fostering

Fostering Saves Lives

Fostering Saves Two Lives, The Dog You Foster And The Dog Who Is Able To Take It's Place At The Rescue

Fostering Is So Rewarding

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