Fostering shelter animals gives them a chance to adapt to home life, be trained, healed, or have their needs met while on the road to adoption. Fostering a dog or cat can be a richly rewarding experience, and it may be easier than you think.
The first thing a prospective foster needs to do is contact a local rescue or shelter. Many will have information for you on their websites to make the process of fostering easier. For your first foster, it would be prudent to ask for a less challenging animal. Decide with the organization how long you will foster. It may be possible to try it out for a night or weekend to see how it goes, or you can try to foster for a longer period of time. You can even ask to be connected to other foster volunteers who can give you advice and guidance.
You’ll also need to find out the organization’s veterinary care policy. Sometimes an organization will pay for care from certain vets.
One last way foster care is made easier for volunteers – it’s tax deductible! U.S. Tax Court ruled that the costs of foster care can be deducted by foster providers.
