Comfort for Critters loves to support any group that is working to improve the lives of companion animals. Often these are animal shelters, but sometimes they are not “shelters” at all, but simply a group of private homes, which together create a foster care system. In 2020, almost 55,000 in the US were cared for by these foster care families. These groups typically start with a realization, by some caring person, of what breaks their heart. They then take the important, the scary, the often-overlooked next step, of doing something about it.
These non-profit groups recruit a group of foster parents who are willing to open their homes to displaced animals and care for them, as if they were their own. I have to think that opening their homes is truly the easy part. These people are opening their hearts in the most selfless of ways.
The pets they will take in often come from “high-kill” shelters and are cared for by these families until they are adopted. These volunteers bring their “foster pets” to local adoption events and welcome strangers into their homes, so that a family can meet a dog or cat.
My first dog, Daisy, came from a high-kill shelter in Indiana to a foster care system in Lombard, IL when her days were literally numbered (three, I think). Allowing me to visit her at her foster home and hear first-hand about her personality, helped me fall in love with her.
Most of us know the sacrifice it takes to care for a pet. But for our own pets, these sacrifices just feel like good parenting. These foster families join the ranks of “heroes” by making so many sacrifices for animals which are not officially a part of their family….and may only be with them for a short time.
The benefits of a foster care system to an animal, are tremendous. Rather than spending time in a cage, with only limited exercise and interaction, these “critters” get to hang out with a family of caring people and usually other pets. The highly social nature of this system paves the way for a good attitude, once they are adopted into their forever family.
The benefits to society are abundant as well. The cost to open a shelter, along with the monthly overhead, is often too great for people to take on. The foster care system offers a nice alternative, allowing many more animals to be rescued each year, many more families to find their perfect pet and many more people to get involved in saving these little lives. I love giving Comfort for Critters blankets to foster care systems, which will assign a blanket to each of their little ones. The blanket is enjoyed in the foster home and then goes along with the pet when they are adopted. In the US sheltering industry, 8% of cats and 17% of dogs are estimated to be in foster homes, as of 2020. This rate is on the rise, which is a wonderful thing for homeless pets in the US!
