Foster Care Information
How About Fostering?
- Have you been thinking about adding another pet but just aren’t sure if you’re ready?
- Is a life-long commitment just not possible for you right now?
- Do you want to get involved with pet rescue but don’t know where to start?
Fostering a pet by opening your home and heart to a pet in need is a great experience. By giving a temporary home to a homeless pet you can save the life of an otherwise homeless pet. Foster care consists of providing a safe, loving, temporary home for a dog until a permanent adoptive home can be found. We do our best to screen for health and temperament before allowing a pet to enter our program. We can rescue more pets with foster homes!
Second Chance needs loving homes to care for some of our homeless pets while we search for their permanent homes. By fostering a pet, you have an opportunity to make a huge difference in the life of that pet and eventually it’s new family/person. Fostering can be hard work, but it is also extremely gratifying! It definitely can help you focus on what’s really important in life. This pet will provides you with love, joy, and the satisfaction of having saved a life.
Do you have a question about fostering?
Which Pets Need Foster Homes?
A dog or cat that needs a “break” from the shelter.
Some pets are overlooked by potential homes and the longer they sit in a cage here, the more likely they are to become bored, depressed, lose weight, etc. We like to get these pets out to foster homes to help them as well as to gain more information about their personality. This is also a great opportunity to get a head start on basic training (for dogs) and socialization. You may be asked to bring the dog into the shelter for public hours on occasion or to an adoption event. Arrangements can usually be made that fit your schedule.
A pup, kitten, or litter of pups or kittens, which are too young or just would do better in a home.
These little ones usually require a little extra work since the puppies may not be housebroken. The kittens are full of energy so may have a higher activity level than an older cat. Depending on their age, they may not have received their first set of vaccines and testing.
A dog or cat that is sick or injured.
These pets will need treatment if they are ill or bed rest/ limited activity if they are injured. Whether sick or injured, there is generally a set time period where the dog goes into foster care until they are cleared medically by our vet. Then they are placed up for adoption. We have found that these pets heal much faster if placed in a home environment.
Fill Out an Application to Start Fostering a Pet Today!
Here is How Our Foster Program Works:
- We provide all foster homes with food, crates and any necessary medicine or medical care, and guidance.
- We recommend crate training as well as using positive reinforcement training methods for dogs.
- All pets that are in foster care remain the property of the shelter until adopted.
The time frame for a foster depends on the pet and can range from a few days to months. We try our best to give you an estimated time frame when you begin the foster. If this sounds like a program that you would be interested in, please complete a foster application.
You are also welcome to submit applications in person, by e-mail, or fax: (508) 867-5019. For further information, please contact: Second Chance at (508) 867-5525.
Foster Home Responsibilities:
Provide temporary home for this pet.
Treat the dog as a member of your family.
Be patient. Understand that all dogs are rescue dogs and their behavior can be unpredictable. Be prepared for some adjustment in the beginning. It can be stressful for both you and the dog to be in a new situation. Cats will need time to explore their environment and feel safe and comfortable in their new home.
Be willing to foster your pet from rescue to adoption. The amount of time needed to find a permanent home for a pet can vary from days to months.
If you are working full time, provide a safe place for the dog to be while you are gone. We highly recommend crate training to keep both the dog and your home safe and secure. We will provide a crate if requested.
Foster homes sign a foster care agreement and agree to abide by these policies. Foster homes are also provided with a guide book to help answer many of the questions you may have.
Notify your foster coordinator immediately in the event the dog or cat is sick or lost (your foster agreement includes the names and numbers of your contacts). You may be asked to bring the pet to the shelter or a designated vet for treatment.
In the event that an animal is seriously ill or a dog shows serious temperament issues, the staff will make decisions on how best to handle the situation.
We welcome foster homes that work to find permanent homes for our pets. However, requirements must be met by all adopters. An adoption application must be filled out and approved to finalize all adoptions. In the event that a foster home decides to adopt, a screening process is used to finalize the arrangements and adoption donations are paid to Second Chance Animal Services to help cover costs so that we can assist the next homeless pet.