Foster a Pet

BECOME A FOSTER FAMILY

The mission of the LASCC Foster Care Program is to give our shelter animals the individualized care and socialization they need to prepare them for adoption or rescue.  Information gathered during the foster process helps us place animals in homes with families who can best meet their needs.  Specific goals of the program include:

 The shelter environment can be stressful, which in turn lowers immunity.  Coupled with a high volume of animals housed in one location is a recipe for sickness and disease.  Our veterinary team does a phenomenal job at treating sick animals and keeping the population comfortable, but a home environment is ideal.  That’s where our foster families can really make a difference! Fostering can be a flexible, fun, and rewarding volunteer job.  Here’s why:

It's more flexible than volunteer jobs that require you to show up at a specific time for a certain number of hours.

It's a great way to enjoy a pet if you are not in a position to make that lifetime commitment right now. Fostering can be an excellent option for college students or military families.

Would you like to add a dog or cat to your household, but you're not sure? Fostering can be a great way to find out.

 

Bottle Feeders
A group of specialized foster parents that are experienced with orphaned puppies or kittens.  This foster will take a litter that comes into the shelter without a mother.  LASCC will provide milk replacement and infant pet bottles along with a starter kit.  Animals will need to be fed every 3 hours around the clock until weaning age.  Most bottle feeder fosters will keep their foster animals until adoption ready.  This is the most time consuming foster group and is great for retired individuals.

Short-Term Fosters
A group of foster families willing to open their home and hearts to an animal that has been chosen for transport.  These animals have a rescue willing to take them into another state to be put up for adoption.  Short Term fosters usually foster an animal between 2 weeks-4 weeks.  The animal will gain socialization skills, health, and love during this time which is valuable to creating a more adoptable pet!

Foster To  Adopt
Have you ever wanted to “test-drive” a pet?  This is the program for you!  Potential adopters can choose an animal at the shelter that they think would fit into their lifestyle and/or family.  They are given 2 weeks to take the pet home and make a decision on whether the pet is a good fit for their family.  At the end of the 2 week period if the animal is a match- the adoption paperwork is processed.  If the animal didn’t work out- the foster person will return the animal and has the option of trying another.

 

Interested? 
Fill out our Foster Family Application or email LASCC@lafayettela.gov for more information.

Cat/Kitten Foster Manual