our fosters
Fostering allows animals who be euthanized in shelters to have a second chance. Generally people like myself, who foster, do it through a single or multiple rescue organizations. The rescue organization pulls a dog at a reduced rate from the shelter and needs a home to care for the fuzzie until they can get him/her adopted. Many times the dogs pulled have a medical or personality issues that need to be dealt with prior to final adoption. Some shelters won't release a dog to rescue unless there is a reason like this that the dog might not be able to be adopted otherwise.I began fostering through Help4Pets in December 2004 and Underdog Rescue in June 2005. I currently am on the board and fostering for Pit Bull Rescue San Diego. I do not only foster pits as my passion is all breeds so I get to foster pretty much anyone I want to foster. It has been extremely rewarding. Is fostering for you?
my fosters
Sasha was rescued from the Los Angeles South County Shelter the day before she was scheduled to be euthanized. She had come in with a broken leg and the shelter did not have resources or space to deal with it. Through the efforts of a lot of rescuers, she is now living happily at my house. She's a teeny little angel with a shepherdy look and a little dog body. She has a great zest for life despite the thud thud thud of her little cast.
Penny was the unfortunate circumstance of a shelter that was too full. There wasn't enough room to put her on public display so she was spending the best part of her socialization weeks in a kennel all alone. She is a little shy with humans but loves our canine family.
Cooper came in to the south county shelter officially as a stray. Since he was picked up so close to the Mexico border, we're thinking he may have been a puppy mill puppy that they decided was too sick to take across the border. He had juvenile cellulitis which has resulted in permanent physical scarring but definitely not emotional scars. Cooper is a happy happy boy.
Minnie came to us with practically no hair. There was just enough to know that she was a chocolate color. Despite the medical conditions, she was perhaps the most joyful and easy foster we ever had. We didn't have her long as her forever mom found her right away and nursed her through the rest of her recovery. Both are very lucky.
Nugget is an adorable light brindle pittie puppie. Everyone who has met him so far falls in love. He's a typical puppy - no attention span, bouncy joy, cuddly love and sharp little needle teeth.
Brutus came to us when we thought that McBean had been adopted. Two days after we got Brutus, McBean came back. Brutus is a pit bull/rottweiler/??? mix who lost his mom when she was hit by a car after the fourth of July fireworks.
McBean is one of 23 puppies rescued by Pit Bull Rescue San Diego from a San Bernardino high kill shelter. He is a funny little man and seems to get along with everyone he meets - human and canine.
Shilo is a sharpei/bull terrier mix. He loves bouncing around and he has the funnies short legged body. He loves to crawl into available laps in between play bouts. He is aggressive when playing with Borrego but Borrego tolerates him pretty well.
The first 8 weeks of his life were locked away in a grain silo with the top cut off in a bad area of Riverside. He shivers even when he's outside in the cold for a little bit.
Summer: 10.07.05 - 02.04.06
Summer was named after the County shelter worker who worked with rescue to try to save her. She was a 3 month old pit bull puppy who was evidently hit by a car at some point and then left to die. She didn't die, just ended up with some severely handicapped hips/legs. The County shelter was going to euthanize her but the combined efforts of Jenny Ludovissy (fabulous animal activist), Penny Adams (Care of Indigent Animals ) and Kate John (Pit Bull Rescue San Diego) got her out. All they needed was a foster. OK - so I said I wouldn't do any more medical fosters because they stay with me too long and I cry too much when they leave, but they are also hugely rewarding.
Summer was almost everything that people should be able to see in the pit bull breed. She looks like the dog from Little Rascals (who, by the way, was a pit bull) or the RCA dog (who was also a pit bull). She will play but immediately run back to cuddle in my lap and give kisses. She and Borrego mostly interacted well although she did develop some dog aggression as she started to get older. We dealt with it by using some scheduled separation for the two of them and clear indications of social hierarchy.
Hava: 05.31.05 - 08.13.05
This foster was a gorgeous 12 week old rottie mix named Hava. She was being pulled from an existing foster home where she had lived since she was born
because there was a sick puppy there that necessitated some disinfecting and rehoming. Lucky me! She was gentle and calm, got along with Borrego and charmed everyone including people I would have never expected. Oh and definitely charmed me.
Unfortunately she was diagnosed with Parvo not too long after she joined our home and we have a long accounting of her recovery on her page.
Thankfully she lived through it and now lives with a wonderful family in La Jolla. She was the closest we have come to adopting one of our fosters.
Hope: 04.10.05 - 05.05.05
Help4Pets pulled an adorable 3 month old shepherd puppy from the county shelter that needed heart surgery. They asked and I agreed to foster. The vet at shelter had commented that the only reason they have not euthanized her is because she was so darn cute and sweet. She bore that out completely.
We had a little bit of a scare with her reaction to the ridylan given her to ward off infection but she healed up quickly. She was adopted out to a family who still keeps in contact and has sent pictures of Hope enjoying her new home.
Spirit: 12.14.04 - 02.21.05
We discovered Spirit as we wandered the kennels at the Chula Vista shelter. We were actually waiting to see if we could pull a different fuzzy who ended up getting adopted while we were there. I spotted a scared black face at the back of one of the kennels. We coaxed him out and when he came into the light I gasped. Attached to that gorgeous soulful face was just bones in skin. All I could see pas that was these amazing sad and terrified eyes. A 46 pound fuzzy that should be 70+ easily. My heart just opened wide and scooped him in.
Help4Pets helped me to take him out. I had him for 3 months during which we fattened him up and took him through agility to increase his confidence.
He was adopted on February 21, 2005 by a perfect family for him. I still stay in contact and he is still doing well. He continues to be fearful but his new family is working with that and he is making progress.