BECOME A FOSTER HOME!

Foster parents provide temporary homes for animals prior to adoption. Providing foster care is a wonderful and personal way to contribute to saving homeless pets and help them avoid the very high euthanasia rates in local shelters. Foster homes allow Cat’s Cradle to transfer animals out of these facilities and find new homes for them. Every Cat’s Cradle foster family is part of a lifesaving network!

There are several possible reasons:

• Foster care can help save a cat’s life when a shelter is full.
• Some cats don’t do well in a shelter environment because they are frightened or need a little extra care.
• Newborn kittens that need to be nursed or bottle-fed need foster care. Most shelters do not have the staff to give around-the-clock care to a very young kitten.
• Some cats need time to recover from an illness or injury before adoption; others are recovering from abuse or neglect.

Whatever the reason, these kitties need some extra TLC before they can be adopted. Providing foster care for a few weeks or months can be a lifesaving gift for a cat or kitten. It can also be a life-changing experience for you and your family.

If you want to do something to help the cats and kittens, fostering can be a flexible, fun, and rewarding volunteer job. Here’s why:

• It’s more flexible than volunteer jobs that require you to show up at a specific time for a certain number of hours.
• It’s a great way to enjoy a pet if you are not in a position to make that lifetime commitment right now.

Fostering can be an excellent option for singles, families, and retired persons. Most foster parents have very full schedules and even full-time jobs. Our foster network consists of: counselors, teachers, soccer moms, correction officers, bank officers, waitresses, small business owners, biologists, accountants, and everything in between. They do all have one thing in common…the love of animals. We can’t wait for you to become a part of our lifesaving community!

It’s best to have some knowledge about companion animal behavior and health. We provide training for you, complete with a foster manual and a foster coordinator for you to contact with questions or concerns.

Some of the cats most in need of foster care are those that require a little extra help or some training. Just by getting to know the
kitty, you’ll help Cat’s Cradle and the forever home learn more about his/her personality prior to adoption.

All cats are vetted prior to entering a foster home. There are wellness clinics for foster homes and medical bills are covered by Cat’s Cradle. Typically, the foster home will provide the food and litter and will drive their foster to get vaccinations, attend pet outings, and vet appointments.

Giving up an animal that you’ve fostered, even to a wonderful forever home, can be difficult emotionally. Many adopters post updates and photos of their new kitty. It often helps to focus on the lives saved. Try and remember that as one foster kitty is adopted, room is made for another cat or kitten to be transferred out of a high-risk pound or shelter and into your care. Knowing that you were a part of saving a life and helping your foster transition into a loving home is tremendously rewarding.

Some people are reluctant to foster animals because they are concerned it is unfair to take in a cat, establish a bond with him or her, and then allow the animal to be adopted to another family. Being in a foster home can be a lifesaving bridge for a stray or frightened kitty. It gives the cat a chance to get used to life in a house. The cat learns that people can be kind, that food is available, and that there is a warm, secure place to sleep.

When you are ready, just fill out the two forms below and we will put you in touch with our foster program coordinator. We will discuss what types of cats you are comfortable with fostering. Maybe a momma with a litter of kittens? Bottle babies? One or two adult cats? Or a small family of rowdy teenagers? We have something for everyone!

Foster parents significantly decrease the number of cats and kittens euthanized each year because shelters just don’t have space for them.