I am SO excited!! I am going to start fostering dogs

later this summer. YAY!

We will be fostering through a rescue organization we got one of our dogs through. So if anyone has any advice, please share.

 

that tis great news!! I think Jimia and delauk are the experts aroudn here hopefylly they can help answer

good Luck!

 

Good for you Lucylu.

I think Jamiya has had more fosters than me...definately more organized and arranged fosters, most of mine have been a either a last minute 'grab it from the person about to euthanize it' or picked them up out of the street....(and the occasional one smuggled into the house by my daughter :shock: ) so it was usually a matter of 'your in one room....your in another room....you have to come to work with me every day....and find homes ASAP so that animal control didnt raid my house. Not very organized but it worked :lol:

What I will say is try and take dogs that match your dogs personality (s)
i.e if your dog(s)...sorry I dont recall how many you have....have a dominant personality then you would be better with subordinate dogs or dogs a little on the submissive side, bringing in another dominant personality might cause problems. Always introduce the dogs outside of your house, if possible take your dog to the shelter (or where the 'foster' dog is currently staying...again though the introduction should be outside....neutral ground) a couple of times to see how they get along in general. I personally feel that size is important here, its better to have dogs that are similar in size to your own dogs just on the off chance that there is a little 'dispute' over anything, age.....I dont know, sometimes a good age variance is a good thing, sometimes not, it depends on the dogs themselves. I wouldnt put a young puppy with an elderly dog though it might be too much for the elderly dog although there are cases where Ive heard people say a young pup has given the old dog a new lease on life.

Dont expect them to eat dinner too close to each other, Ive been told a few times Im wrong on this.....with my own dogs they all had their own 'corner', I have the attitude that there are many dogs that are not dog aggressive until it comes to feeding time, when you have multiple dogs in the house there will always be some level of competition for food from at least one of the dogs, this doesnt mean that they will physically fight over it but it can cause frustration which can escalate....so why not just avoid the issue in the first place. As a trainer, I have been told by some that I should 'be able' to do something to prevent any bad situations.....the thing is, I can if I want to however Im a firm believer in that every dog deserves to have his/her own little bit of space....which means they should all have their own sleeping place and they should be able to eat a meal in peace without feeling threatened by another dog...therefore I personally dont feel that there is anything wrong with them all having their own 'corner'.
Dont get me wrong. Of the main dogs I had at my house, I could leave my Rott and Chihauha right next to each to eat their food, there was never a problem, I had to keep my whippet away....I actually caught her one day standing in front of another dogs food bowl blocking it while eating her own food, every time the other dog tried to go to his bowl she would grunt at him and he so he just lay there looking at his food....and then there was BJ, I could put her bowl next to any of the other dogs bowls....as long as I was there she wouldnt do anything but if I wasnt there then she would nail one of the other dogs (however if the cats wanted her food she would back off and let them eat it)....and then there was Joey the Pit mix, he didnt live with me all the time, he would get so stressed out at feeding time that he just wouldnt eat so he got his own little corner behind the couch so he didnt have to look at the other dogs.
So yeah, if feeding in different areas eliminates frustration and avoids any issues then do it, what is that saying....we all need our own 3 feet of personal space....no different for dogs.

Dont know if any of that helps.

 

Good for you!! :y_the_best:
It's always good to hear people are helping out the critters! Just a word of warning.. it's sometimes very hard when they have to leave. I've been fostering beagles in my area and this one little guy, Valentino, completly stole my heart. When I had decided to keep him he had already found a home. I was crushed. That was in March.. I still miss him tremendously.
I'm not saying this to try to convince you not to do this at all.. it's such a wonderful fulfilling experience. Just try not to get too attached is all. They always find ways to creep deep into your heart.. even when you don't suspect it!
Good luck to you! I hope you find it as rewarding as I have!
:wink:

 

Thanks for all the info!

I am concerned about getting attached. But I am aware of that happening and I know that I am only a short-term home for the dog so I hope the helps. And there won't be room to save another dog if I keep the foster. So I am going to keep all of that in my mind.