Fostering

 
 

Save a life by fostering

CARE for Animals utilizes foster homes as way of socializing, training, and comforting shelter pets. The purpose of foster care is to allow a dog or cat to live in a home environment while awaiting permanent placement, permitting the Foster Family to evaluate the pet and to work with the pet to reincorporate him or her back into a home environment. A home environment is less stressful on the pet than a boarding facility or shelter. The exposure the pet gets from being treated as "one of the family" (walks, outings, etc...) often speeds up the adoption process.

If you think you may be able to foster for us, please fill out an application so that we can place you with the right animal.

 

FOSTER SPOTLIGHT

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FOSTER SPOTLIGHT ☆

Rachel Ekdahl and her current foster, Alan

Rachel Ekdahl and her current foster dog, Alan.

Rachel has been fostering for CARE since September of 2022 and is an invaluable asset to our community. Very rarely do we get a foster with no personal pets AND who says “yes” so often. Rachel is also very skilled at giving her temporary guests the love they deserve along with the routine and boundaries they need. Seriously, we wish we could clone her! Rachel agreed to answer some questions about her experience below:

  • How many animals have you fostered? I have fostered 8 cute pups! Mizu, Scampi, Sutton, Elvis, Hazel, Chloe, Justin, and now Alan

  • What led you to sign up as a foster initially? I grew up with pets and I love having animals around, especially dogs, but I travel a lot and haven't felt like I have the time to commit to having a dog long term. I knew there was a need for fosters in Little Rock and was walking by CARE one day so I popped in to see what fostering would look like. They actually needed a foster for the week and it was so much fun I've been doing it ever since!

  • What were your concerns going into foster work and how did they differ from your actual experience? I was pretty used to a wide range of dogs going into this, but I also foster children and I was worried that it might be too hard to foster both children and animals at the same time. When I'm fostering kids CARE makes a point to give me child safe dogs and some of the best experiences I've had have been with how sweet the dogs are with the kids. There's a lot of love there and they can really make a huge difference in the kids' experience. CARE is so receptive and whenever I've had any needs, questions, or concerns about anything they've found a fix! They've also made it easy to foster animals around my schedule, I've never had an issue working it around my often chaotic life.

  • What is your favorite thing about being a foster for CARE? The dogs I've had have been so much fun! It's been so great having a pup around and an enthusiastic companion to go on adventures with on my days off. They've all been so affectionate and a joy to have around.

  • What would you say to others who are interested in fostering? What a gift to be able to be a space to rescue a dog and keep them out of shelters or worse while they find their future home and get to have such a blast together while they wait. I think everyone should try it at least once! You can always change your mind, but I bet you won't :)

Volunteers like Rachel are the beating heart of our mission to rescue, rehome, and spay/neuter. To sign up as a CARE foster, please fill out an application here.