What is a foster home for dogs?
Foster homes are people who offer their homes and time to take care of a dog on a temporary basis , or until they find permanent adoption.
The animal, then, is said to be in foster care. Therefore, its adoption continues to be managed by the protector, which continues in search of a home for the dog.
The person who has him in foster care will take care of him and attend to him. You can also, if you have the possibility and want to do so, collaborate altruistically with your maintenance and expenses.
What does it take to be a host family?
Have time , space and desire to help and learn.
The most common is that to be chosen as a foster home, the person or family has an interview with the animal protection entity that manages the adoption. This interview is similar to the one that the candidates to adopt will go through.
What are the advantages of being a foster home?
- Time: being a foster home you help for as long as you can , without committing yourself in the long term. Dogs can live on average between 10 and 15 years. Not all people have the certainty of being able to commit for such a long period of time, but they could do it for a couple of years, for example. Being a foster home offers the option of a conscious commitment in the short or medium term , with responsibility and without abandonment.
- Money: Keeping a dog also requires a cost. On average, each person spends around €800 a year on caring for and feeding their dog. If you are a foster home, you do not have to assume all the expenses of the animal, since the protector and the partners will provide support.
- Awareness: you check in a practical way your abilities to meet all the needs of the foster dog . Even if this turns out to be your “perfect match” , it is very likely that you can adopt him later, becoming his family and permanent home.
- Satisfaction: feeling that you are helping and giving a dog the opportunity to find a home , as well as participating in the happiness that a dog brings to the family; it can only be a great personal satisfaction.
What benefits does being in a foster home have for the dog?
- Socialization : the life of a dog, today, is not alone in the field or in a kennel. Dogs are in the cities, together with responsible people who love them and take care of them as they need.
But since cities are also full of challenges for: dogs: noises, cyclists, scooters, cars, buses, motorcycles, screaming children, food smells, many other dogs, people, walks on a leash, neighbors…sometimes they get scared and behave “badly”. Shelters play a crucial role in presenting all these challenges in a positive and progressive way to dogs that have already suffered abandonment, so that they see it as something everyday and are free from fear. This will make them behave without reactivity to all these stimuli. - Habituation: hours without peeing. Loneliness. Postman calls. Visits. Works on the top floor. Go to terraces Cross paths with other dogs and say hello or not. Different situations that a dog has to face every day. Better if you know them in advance and in a positive way thanks to the work of the shelter.
- Comfort: although it is true that dogs are better cared for every day in shelters. Nothing can compare to sleeping at a suitable temperature on a mat and together with a human family.
- Opportunity: a dog that goes out every day and meets other people and dogs to fall in love with his character, has many more chances of being adopted permanently even in his own neighborhood.
What problems can be in a foster home for a dog?
- Stress : in the face of any change, the body prepares itself and triggers the physiological mechanisms of stress that precisely favor adaptation. If a dog changes its foster home several times or its routines are modified, it may have residual stress problems. That is why it is important, the commitment not only of permanent homes but also of temporary ones.
- Grief : in some cases, the person who offers their home connects in a special way with the foster dog, but due to their situation they cannot adopt it permanently. The separation can cause the dog to go through a depression when it leaves its foster home.
These problems are solved with a progressive introduction to the new home , allowing the dog to adapt, without haste, and get to know what will be its definitive family.
