Question for people who doesn't foster pets

I fostered 4 kittens for awhile. Found them outside as ferals. Adopted one to my in-laws and one through a rescue group. I had the other two up until about 2 weeks ago (since May). One time was enough. It was very stressful on me, my husband, and the cats. I always thought I wanted to foster regularly but learned it just isn't for me.

I almost cried when Diesel got adopted, but I have his new family as friends on FB and can see he's still the crazy little kitty I raised and am glad he is in his forever home. When his 2 brothers took so long to be adopted, I was frazzled and stressed and my cats were over the extra furballs being in the house.

I can say I've done it, experienced it, and helped 4 cats in need. But I really don't think I'll do it again. I am so happy for those who can make it work and do it regularly

We have fostered in the past but are not currently fostering due to our numbers and the medical needs of the older animals. We also have an aggressive cat that makes it difficult to bring anyone else in.

Now, I am not opposed to fostering in the future but DH becomes very attached to the fosters and it really upsets him when we adopt them out. He's always worried that the new family won't take care of them as well as we do.

We've solved the problem by taking in older and/or sick kitties that wouldn't normally get adopted and caring for them through the end of their lives. We think it's a good compromise.

I run a small pet sitting business and doggy daycare ... not a good foster environment ... I did private foster ( long story) and would again if needed but regularly not feasible

I have fostered dogs before...lots of them. The money and time are just not on my side right now in such an endeavor.

I work long shifts, generally 15-16 hours away from home at a time.

I used up all my vacation when I adopted these two so that I could be there 24x7 for their acclimation to the household, but that is not feasible to do repeatedly for fostering, and I don't believe that I can care for any special needs when for three days out of the week I'm only home and awake for a few hours.

Let me tell you how we do it.

If the cat/kitten has an obvious health problem, I run them by our vet at my own expense (but they give me a discount). When I bring them home, I put them in our spare bathroom with their own litter box, food, and water, a bed, a few toys, etc. I turn the light on during the day (no windows), and off at night. I give them soft food in the morning and evening, dry food always available, and I visit with them on a regular basis, playing with them, petting them, etc.

I do my best to keep them away from our cats until I have a pretty good read on their health. The current ones have diarrhea, and, while it may just be the usual kitten problem, we're treating them for coccidia and will treat them for giardia if that doesn't clear it up.

Flambe is hissing at them, as he usually does when he first discovers new animals in the house. Once he discovers that they want to play even more than he does, he'll accept them completely.

There will be paw play under the door before long. Sterling, our mother cat (despite being male), will make up with them very quickly once they are out.

Now, how has it gone?

1. Ella, the Katrina survivor. Pulled from the shelter as undesirable due to a sore on her nose. After a few weeks, we decided we couldn't take her back to go back in a cage after 3 years of that.

2. Flambe, the crazy cat. He never settled down at the shelter, so we adopted him.

3. Jeeves. He supposedly needed socialization, but he was a cuddler from the start. Took him back and he was promptly adopted.

4. Emily. She was just a little "off." A few weeks with us got her back on track. Took her back and she got adopted.

5. Sweetness. A little wild and "rough" in appearance. She filled out nicely, calmed down, and was eventually adopted.

6. Light. Caught in a feral trapping program, she lived for quite a while under our couch. When she came, she had no idea what playing was. She eventually got excited by a shoe string. She loved being cuddled, eventually. We were worried that she might have trouble getting adopted, but a family looked at her. When they took her in the play room, she promptly curled up on Grandma's lap and went to sleep. Needless to say, they took her home.

7. ZZ. He went from a malnourished sickly waif to the slick young gentleman in the tux. When we took him back, he was adopted within the week.

8. Now we have Sugar and Spice. They love attention, and I hope we can get their digestion settled down soon.

I don't officially foster, but most people in the neighborhood know to come to me with baby birds and squirrels, and once a half drowned chipmunk baby that had fallen in a pond and my son fished it out. (Dale was pretty nippy, but stayed with us for a month then released) I have raised several baby birds, (my dad was an expert at this, so I learned from the best) LOADS of squirrels (Love these guys, they stick around for a long time when you release them)

I couldn't foster a domestic animal. It would wind up staying.

Originally Posted by Kailie

Mine couldn't care less! Most of the times my fosters are separated from our own cats anyway. The only exceptions are social cats/kittens who have clean bill of health and who don't stress my own out. They are so used to other cats by now, it doesn't phase them at all.

Click to expand...

That's good, but mine would definitely care. One time I brought a cat in (neighbor cat that got loose), Cindy curled up and sat on her tail and Swanie hissed up a storm. I guess if cats are coming and going all the time they get used to it, like at the vet clinic. She has at least 8 or 9 running around the clinic and they aren't bothered by each other or cats who come in. Sometimes one will come up to the carrier to say hi to Swanie and he hisses up a storm.

Originally Posted by Denice

I rent with a 2 pet limit and I have 2 pets so fostering isn't possible. It would be hard for me to give them up though especially the adults and the black cats would be the hardest. Black adult cats get adopted so rarely and I wouldn't want to think about what happens when they go back. Even if it's a good no kill shelter it still isn't the same as being in a home.

Click to expand...

I just wanted to point out that if you do foster you don't have to foster for a shelter where you have to return the cat to be adopted. I wouldn't do that either. I used to foster dogs for a shelter for a short time and it was hell to return them. As a result I kept two of my fosters. I just couldn't see bringing them back and putting them in a cage at that scary place. I would never foster for a shelter again.
But fortunately there are options. If you foster for a foster based rescue the cat or dog would stay with you until they get adopted and then go directly to the home. My rescue does home visits to the potential adopter before they adopt the cat so I get a chance to meet the people and see where the cat would live. If it doesn't seem like a good place where I think the cat would be safe and happy the adoption is denied. It's always up to the foster home to deny or approve the adopter if they want that responsibility (if not I make the decision for the other foster homes). When the cat is ready to be adopted I take my fosters to the new home and stay for a little bit to make it a bit easier on the cat. It's also easier on me since I know my kitty is safe and sound. I know where he is, how he's feeling and how he's being treated. They never leave me to go off into the unknown where I don't know if they are well. I also check up with the adopter after a few days to make sure that everything is fine and many send me pictures of the cat in his new home. That makes it a lot easier to let them go.
Whenever I find it hard to see one leave me I think about the scared little cats down at the pound that are about to go through the steel door and that with my foster going off to a great home I can now help one of the kitties at the pound.

Originally Posted by Ziggy'smom

If you foster for a foster based rescue the cat or dog would stay with you until they get adopted and then go directly to the home.

Click to expand...

That was the rough part for us when we fostered. I took on 4 kittens with the expectations that it would be quick. When I still had kittens 4-5mos later, tension and stress rose in my house.

One of the girls who adopted one of those kittens contacted me recently. She wants me to take in a bunch of cats her husband found. But I can't do this again. I think for me it'd be a lot easier to foster for a shelter for a set period of time (growth, weight, etc) and then return them and take on a new batch like my friend does.

I'd love to foster as well, it is impossible though. We have the space needed but not the time and both the kitties have trouble with other cats, Jazzy fights any cat (apart from Ginga) and Ginga is attacked by almost all our neighborhood cats.