Interested in becoming a Foster?

Fostering an animal is a rewarding experience that not only helps get an animal out of the chaotic shelter environment, but it also allows us to bring more animals into our care. Foster homes also allow animals to decompress, learn the manners of being in a home, and form a bond with their family.

Foster homes provide loving homes for pets that are in need of special attention or need to be in a home environment as opposed to the shelter environment.

We only ask that you provide a loving and safe home to your foster pet which includes feeding, exercising and socializing your foster regularly. We hope that you treat your foster pet as if it were your own pet. You must also keep all of your current pets up to date on shots, spayed/neutered along with making this your only foster pet. You may also be given specific instructions you will be expected to follow that pertain to the health and/or safety of your foster pet.

We may ask that you occasionally take your foster pet to the veterinarian or bring them to the shelter depending on your availability.

The average length of fostering is 2-8 weeks (sometimes up to 10 weeks for small kittens) depending on the foster animal’s needs.

Certainly and we will work with you to match you with the foster pet that best fits your specific situation.

We hope that you want to spend as much time with our foster pet as possible. While we do understand that other things in life come up we ask that you always keep your foster pets best interests in mind when making plans that will take you away from them for long periods of time.

We ask that you give us time to find another foster home or an open kennel at the shelter, but if that is not ideal we will find a solution that works for everyone and as quickly as possible.

Yes, depending on your pets and the foster pet we encourage interaction. We only ask that you take things slowly when introducing them and follow any and all instructions from the foster liaison or other member of the Five Acres Staff. Please note, there may be foster pets that cannot have any interaction with current pets due to medical conditions, but we will make sure you are aware of any restrictions prior to taking the animal from the shelter.

We will work with you to find placement for the foster pet and only ask that you give us as much advance notice as possible.

We will provide you with all food, veterinary care and medicine for your foster pet along with a crate for them to sleep in.

We will provide everything you need to make your foster experience successful. Just let us know what you need and we will help facilitate your request to the best of our abilities.

Yes, as long as you agree to always use a leash when outdoors, we encourage even those that have fences to personally take their foster pets outside while on a leash because you never know what might happen that could put you and/or the foster pet in danger.

We hope this is the case, but please note once a pet becomes available for adoption we can’t “hold” that animal for anyone, not even the foster family. We encourage you to contact your Canine/Feline coordinator as soon as you or anyone else you know decides they want to adopt the foster pet.

If your foster pet bites a person breaking the skin this must be reported to the Canine/Feline Coordinator within 24 hours as we are required to report this immediately. If the person’s injuries are serious enough to go to the emergency room please seek medical attention and then report the incident to the shelter.
If your foster pet bites another animal causing injury please ensure the other animal receives treatment, give the owner the Canine/Feline Coordinators’ contact information and report the incident to the shelter immediately. If the injury is not serious please still report the incident to the Canine/Feline Coordinator & provide the shelters’ information to the other owner.