I want to share with you how important fostering is. We all hear it. We all know it. But today hit differently. Rambo got adopted today. After 18 months in rescue with ZERO applications, today he got adopted. Why? Because he was fostered.
People like to see photos of videos of the dogs doing real life every day family/home things. And as a foster you give the dog a chance at those things.
We took him in 6 weeks ago as a foster to adopt. We needed time for him to settle and then cat test him since his reaction to cats was unknown. We needed cat friendly. Unfortunately, he is not cat friendly. We confirmed this with 3 trainers. So fast forward to the last week. We realized he needed a cat friendly home so I posted him on socials.
From the day I posted him to the day he went home…. 5 days. That’s it. 5 days! A dog that went from zero applications in 18 months, to posted and adopted in 5 days. The only difference? He was in a foster home. Fostering makes adoptions happen.
The adopters today told me they woke up at 4am wondering if they were making the wrong decision. Why? Because they said “rescue dogs can have issues. Rescue dogs have problems and baggage.” But them, they told me their thoughts changed to “He will be fine because he’s been living in a home instead of a shelter.” And, “ He knows how to live in a home.” They felt better knowing he had been around many different people and animals. They felt better knowing he has been sleeping in my daughter’s bed with her. They felt better knowing he’s been around loving humans not scared in a shelter. Fostering makes it more personal. The dog isn’t just another face, the dog is part of someone’s family and someone’s home. Having the dog in a home made them feel comfortable enough to say YES to adoption.
And as important, fostering allowed him to get in front of different eyes. Because I had him in my home I was able to post him on my community and town pages on socials, my own personal socials, and dog specific (local) pages on socials. This put him in front of all new sets of eyes that the rescue does not have access to. The rescue posts them on PetFinder and their website. There are hundreds of thousands of dogs on PetFinder, it’s way too hard for one to stand out. But on smaller groups on socials? Very easy for those dogs to get noticed.
I’ve also had past adopters tell me they felt more comfortable adopting a dog that was being fostered by me (as an example) because I am a member of their community and we have had mutual friends. It gave them a connection to feel that they were not adopting from a stranger, but rather someone they could trust.
I live in a small town in Southern Maine. I posted Rambo on a few community pages and a few dog specific local pages, but the adopter came from the smallest of all those pages. My town page, Arundel Maine. So please, FOSTER. It doesn’t only save lives it leads to ADOPTION. And adoption is the goal. If you foster you have the ablity to get that dog more individual attention, which increases their odds of adoption. Every foster I have had, has been adopted by someone that saw the dog on my town pages. Pages the rescue does not have access to.
And if you can foster, please consider one of the dogs that has been continuously overlooked. All it takes is that dog getting in front of new eyes to have their forever. The forever they have been waiting so long for. The forever that every dog deserves.
