Fostering means bringing a homeless pet into your home, caring for them, and providing them with affection and socialization until a permanent family comes along who will love them forever. We will support you every step of the way with information, community, and any vet care that may be needed. We also provide all supplies, medicines, and any transport assistance you may request.
The benefits of fostering are numerous.
Our ability to pull animals from shelters is largely determined by how many pet fosters are available to care for them. Since North Carolina has the third highest euthanasia rate in the country, we work to save as many as we can from overcrowded and underfunded shelters. We need fosters to be able to do that!
Oftentimes, many animals may not present as who they really are when in an ULTRA high-stress environment, like an animal shelter. They can experience so many things: overwhelm, terror, anxiety, over-stimulation, claustrophobia, frustration - or simply the heartbreak of what they suffered before they wound up in a shelter. While fostering a pet, you can provide them with a warm, safe, kind, and loving environment. Additionally, offering them good food, exercise, and stimulation will help them become healthier and more confident. Add in any leash or house or basic command training, and you've done a great deal to help this animal find their forever family.
A number of cats and dogs coming from animal shelters may have endured a difficult past, such as being the victim of cruelty, neglect, malnourishment, abandonment or severe under-socialization. As a foster, you have the chance and opportunity to gain a pet's trust and show them the reassurance of affection and love, perhaps for the first time. When you provide that, as well as an environment for them to feel safe, you can begin to watch them transform over time.
If you have existing pets, introducing a cat or dog can be a great experience for them as an additional companion - offering them more socialization and a new playmate! Children can also benefit from fostering as a way to introduce responsibility and genuine selflessness. You will also give them the amazing gift of knowing that they helped to save a life. Lastly, it is also a great way to "test" the idea of adding a permanent pet to your family.
Volunteers and fellow foster caregivers from Beautiful Together will help guide you through the experience, give you ideas, answer any questions - and get to learn from you! They will probably even become your friends, too. There is nothing quite like the experience of truly saving a life and knowing others who care just as much as you do, as well.
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