Going to Foster For a Shelter

Since I had the two baby Calicos that didn't make it I decided that I would like to Foster for a shelter here in my area. I was going to foster for the humane society and they provide everything you need and all this and you have to go sit through classes and learn all the stuff they teach the volunteers. However it seemed to me like there are probably places that need help more than that because they have no funding so I am going to foster for a much smaller shelter that is closer to my home.

I need to know what all I should get my cats vaccinated for because they are due and I didn't know if there are more required things when you are bringing animals like this into your home. I just thought I would probly get more answers and better answers from you guys here that do it rather than the (vet) <~ they willbe vaccinated at a high volume low cost clinic I didnt want to talk on the phone to them cause helping and talking to people to give advice is not their specialty.

I will be fostering pregnant cats, cats with litters, or orphans!!

Kristen
Mom To: Princess, Duchess, Sir Bobbles A Lot, and Elvis <~ Bearded Dragon

Ok well several people have checked this post out but no one has responded is there a better location for this thread??

I need to know what all I should get my cats vaccinated for because they are due and I didn't know if there are more required things when you are bringing animals like this into your home. I just thought I would probly get more answers and better answers from you guys here that do it rather than the (vet) <~ they willbe vaccinated at a high volume low cost clinic I didnt want to talk on the phone to them cause helping and talking to people to give advice is not their specialty.

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Hey Kristen....welcome to the wonderful world of fostering!!! What I do is tell my vet that my cats will be around cats of unknown origin and ask for all the appropriate shots/vaccinations. Remember, until you have had your foster kitty checked....it's best to keep the foster in a seperate room from your own kitties.

Katie

Yes, and introduce them carefully when you get them through "quarantine".

I bet your vet would know how long after the cats' shots it's safe to let them interact.

I'm glad you're fostering--you are going to have some very grateful cats and shelter people; because people willing to foster are really really needed.

You do know you're required to post pics of any new cats/kittens, right?

Yay! I'm glad your husband caved and you're going to foster (though, FYI, for the Tipp. Humane Society they don't actually make you go through classes and usually only give you start up stuff (food, litter) and then you supply the rest yourself (tax-exempt of course) to help them out since they have very little money and LOTS of cats.) Just tell your vet that you're going to be fostering cats/kittens and he'll know what to give them, make sure they're vacc. against Parvo though! And watch your fosters at the shelter for any coughing/sneezing (let the shelter know you have cats and they should try to give you cats/kittens without a URI).

Also, how how are you going to house the fosters? In a spare bedroom? In a basement? Feel free to PM me and I can let you know how we set up our little fosters when we had them.

I will be keeping the fosters in the second bedroom.

I will definately be posting pics!

I agree with Katie. I just let my vet know I am fostering unvaccinated cats, and they recommend the vaccinations. I also keep the fosters separate from my kitties until 2 weeks after they are vaccinated. That way, if my kids were carrying something, the newbies won't get it.

It is a lot of fun to foster, and we are always in need of more loving homes to raise the kitties.

depending on how old they are and whether or not they have their mother with them, you may have to keep them in a crate for the majority of the time, until they're old enough to regulate their heat a little better (see http://www.kitten-rescue.com for a wealth of knowledge). I know our little fosters had no mother (luckily were weaning just fine) and needed to be locked in a crate for most of the time and used eachother to stay warm. We did let them out for supervised play time several times a day.

First of all I dont know where you guys live that you have like the best vets ever but I called like 8 vets and shelters and all they said was pretty much "You probably just need distemper" I was thinking distemper and rabies what about kennel cough???

I was thinking of doing a hommade crate for the cats and was wondering if there were any reccomendations or sites you guys know of.

Do you know how old the kits are going to be? Depending on how much you want to spend, you could buy one of the big cages (like they keep kittens in at the HS, with multiple levels, etc) but those are expensive, or you can get something like this:
http://www.petsmart.com/global/produ...N=2047888&Ne=2

and just rig a lid on it. If the kittens are really small, just put them in a regular cat carrier, if Mom is with them, you'll need a bigger one, but you can get those for fairly cheap these days too.

I put a blanket over our enclosure when we're not there since 1) it helps them sleep and tends to make them (especially if there's a Mom) more comfortable as they're "hidden" this way and 2) it keeps drafts out and makes it easier for them to stay warm.

If you do the small animal pen route, make sure you put a blanket down under it, it makes things WORLDS easier to clean up.

I've also got a wholesale pet supply website bookmarked on my home computer if you'd like that.

About the vet, you could just ask them shelter what they would recommend, really, our cats just got the regular yearly shots + distemper. If you're really concerned, I can call my vet and ask him, he's awesome.

Originally Posted by junglebutterfly

First of all I dont know where you guys live that you have like the best vets ever but I called like 8 vets and shelters and all they said was pretty much "You probably just need distemper" I was thinking distemper and rabies what about kennel cough???

I was thinking of doing a hommade crate for the cats and was wondering if there were any reccomendations or sites you guys know of.

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Kittens tend to get URIs as opposed to Kennel Cough. URIs are treated with antibiotics and there isn't a shot to protect the kittens against it.

Katie

http://www.petsmart.com/global/produ...N=2035804&Ne=2

You could try this crate as well. It has a plastic slide out tray for easy cleaning. You could make it really cozy with a soft bed, toys, etc.