June is National Foster a Pet month, and we’re celebrating with Petco Love! With varying lengths of commitment, there are many ways to get involved and save lives with LifeLine. Check out the fun ways you can help foster a pet below.
We are thrilled to celebrate our foster community this month! In 2022, over 6,000 foster parents helped 7,500 pets get a much needed break from our shelters. Our lifesaving mission wouldn’t be possible without them!
One of our long-time foster parents at the LifeLine Community Animal Center, who asked to remain anonymous, has brought home many dogs in need; always one of our large dogs, among those that have had the least chances for an outing, regardless of their looks, health status, or whether they have already fostered them earlier. This individual frequently documents their fosters’ progress in endearing updates like the one shared here. Helping our shelter pets feel a sense of “normalcy” is what it’s all about!
Time flies, but pleasantly, for Gaia. She is completing her fourth foster week, and seems perfectly happy. And healthy too: no problem noted in any aspect (now third week after her heartworm shots). Amusingly, she committed her first mischief (helping herself to a festive plate of cheeses, when nobody was looking): entirely forgivable, and a heartwarming sign that she is a normal dog feeling at home."
Lifesaving happens for more than just the dogs in our care. Watch these video testimonials from some of our feline fosters who help see us through a busy kitten season!
Fostering dogs is a fun way to help a pet in need. LifeLine provides vet care, support, supplies and adoption assistance. Below are a few of the most impactful ways to foster a dog.
Long Term (2 week+ committment)
Many dogs in our care are happy, healthy and ready to find their forever home. All they need is a comfy place to stay, a little love, and help finding their perfect match! With limited space in our shelters, fostering a dog until they get adopted helps create more space in our shelters for more dogs in need.
Others are facing manageable behavior challenges or need to find the right home environment to help them on their adoption journey. We call them Unicorns! The longer dogs are housed in a shelter, the more stressed and in urgent need of placement they become. Foster parents who are open to learning and working with a Unicorn can help them before they ever reach that point.
Special Needs
Dogs of all ages with special medical needs benefit from living in a quiet environment where they can heal. When you foster a dog with special needs, all veterinary costs are covered by LifeLine. Below is an overview of the different needs you might encounter when bringing home this type of foster dog:
- Recovery from surgery or a medical condition
- Heartworm treatment
- Senior or fospice (foster+hospice) care
- Newborn and weaning puppies that are not yet adoption age
Court Case
Sometimes a dog comes into our care who was neglected or abused. Their condition may be so poor that the county pursues legal action against the owner. When this happens, the pet will not be available for adoption until the case goes to court, and the judge releases the pet to us months later, sometimes longer. We can help them begin the healing process by being placed in a foster home. This is much better for them than spending the duration of the case in a shelter kennel. While the length of commitment to fostering a court case dog is open-ended, this is a great option for foster parents who do not have the time to market a dog for adoption.
Calling all cat lovers! You can get your feline fix without the fear of being judged as a crazy cat person. Here are some of our most common cat foster needs.
Kittens
From newborns to 12 weeks old, kitten fostering is usually our greatest need. “Bottle babies” are kittens that are between 0 and 4 weeks old who need to be bottle-fed every 2 to 4 hours. “In-betweeners” are kittens who are transitioning from bottle-feeding to a wet food and formula mixture. They also start learning to use the litter box. Weaned kittens are 6+ weeks and are eating on their own. At any age, fostering kittens is a very rewarding experience! Learn more about fostering cats.
Families
With a mom and her young kittens, mom does most of the work! She grooms them, feeds them and helps them eliminate until they are old enough to do these things on their own.
Special Needs
Cats, at any age, may need additional socialization or may have a specific medical concern that is best cared for in a foster home.
We’re also celebrating a few of our foster heroes. Foster parents are a critical part of our lifesaving mission. Read their stories and we hope you’ll be inspired to sign up to become a foster parent too.
FOSTER A PET MONTH EVENTS
CORNER CUP - JUNE 10TH
Join us at The Corner Cup Coffee in Tucker, GA to learn more about our fostering needs for kitten season! There will also be a chance to meet adoptable foster pets!
2380 Main St, Tucker, GA 30084
11:30 AM to 1:00 PM
OPEN HOUSE - JUNE 17TH
Whether you’re ready to jump into fostering or have still questions, meet our teams in person to get an insight into our lifesaving community. You might just leave with a foster of your very own!
LifeLine Community Animal Center, Fulton County Animal Services, and DeKalb County Animal Services
11:00 AM to 2:00 PM
