Twenty-seven years ago, I lived in Westchester County, New York, and worked at our local SPCA around my teaching job - on weekends and in the summer. I brought home a young Afghan hound to be a "sibling"to our adopted Shetland sheepdog and seven cats. Nina was a wonderful addition to the family, so when another Afghan was struggling with the loneliness and confusion of the animal shelter with a hint of aggression, I offered to take her home and work with her. Her name escapes me now, but she was actually our very first foster dog. With love, respect, expectations, structure, exercise and good food, she learned to be well-mannered and comfortable in her surroundings. My husband and I learned a lot about this particular individual, and when it came time to place her, could make recommendations as to the most favorable situation for the Afghan.
After our children were born and we moved to Connecticut, I became involved with another animal group and fostered many dogs of all shapes and sizes for them. My stint fostering for Pug Rescue of New England started in 1991, when Doris called me with a problem dog. Charlie had lost control of his rear legs and he had sores on the tops of his back feet from dragging them. She wanted me to foster him to see if he was placeable. I had seen an animal acupuncturist speak the year before and thought that might be just the thing for Charlie. PRoNE paid for the initial consultation, and when there was hope, they supported his treatment for months. The acupuncture helped and, just as my husband was almost finished the little cart he had been building for Charlie’s rear end, Charlie began to walk, and even run in a wobbly way (and, thank goodness, hold in his bowel movements better!). By that time, we had already discovered, lo and behold, that he was placeable - with us!
We have since fostered many, many pug individuals and pairs of pugs. Most have gone onto new homes, while some have remained here. Of my current permanent population, two pugs, three Pekingese, and two Japanese chin mixes were originally foster dogs.
Over the years, people have marveled that I could foster dogs and then give them up. One reason that it’s not so hard is because I deal with a lot of dogs. Besides teaching, I’m also the town animal control officer and the local dog obedience instructor. By now, I know what I like in a dog. Because we have 19 "secondhand" dogs (17 sleep in the bedroom), I’m really picky. We have a foster Peke (I also foster for Pekingese Rescue Network) right now who is a real sweetie pie, and although he would certainly have been a great sixth dog, or even twelfth, he’s not a twentieth - that would have to be an unbelievable dog! On the other hand, I think that whenever I take in a foster, my heart is asking, "Will this be one? Will this be a forever dog for me?" Fortunately for me (and my vet bills!), most aren’t.
There are the visitors who get along with other dogs but would hate being a member of such a large pack permanently. If they’re not happy, I’m not happy, so they get placed. Then there are the easy-to-place dogs. There are many great homes looking for pugs - it wouldn’t be fair for me to keep all the "wonderful with kids, other dogs and cats, plus housebroken" ones. Then there were the two puppies I wound up with in 2006. Almost irresistible, but not what I needed. And once in awhile, we wind up with a wild and crazy pug or Pekingese, one I can’t wait to place!
What I have learned about fostering is that we started out with the right "stuff" in the very beginning, without even knowing we were "fostering." Love, respect, expectations, structure, exercise and good food (not necessarily in that order!) are hard to beat. Fosters at our house generally stay in the kitchen (if they’re housebroken) or crated. Our house isn’t that large and keeping the fosters contained helps them learn what we want them to learn. Too much freedom is not good for most dogs! Plus, it’s easier to keep a dog in the just-waiting-for-a-home space in my mind when it’s in the kitchen and not on my lap. We also have a very large fenced yard where all the dogs can lounge and romp if someone is home to keep an eye on them.
The big plus for fostering is the feeling that you are really helping a specific animal. You can see the changes you bring out in a dog as you ready him for a forever home. Fundraising, paperwork, taking applications and transport are all necessary to keep a rescue going, but I think fostering gives the greatest rewards.
There are actually very few disadvantages, as long as your own pack adjusts to "guests", as we call them. Foster dogs have rarely, if ever, brought any sickness to the rest of my dogs. I pay for the fosters’ food and the gas to get to the vet, which can be a burden after paying the bills for my own dogs. Due to our experience, we tend to wind up with the pugs and Pekes that have behavioral or medical issues. This can be stressful, especially if there are difficult decisions to be made. But some of the most troublesome cases can be the most rewarding (I’m smiling at one of my favorite permanent pets right now - a Peke who was returned for aggression, but fits here beautifully).
I really think that everyone involved with dog rescue with enough space (and legally zoned for multiple dogs!) should try fostering at least once. In spite of the occasional heartache, being in the "trenches" helps you understand what it’s all about - saving lives.