If you’re anything like me, and you have a huge heart for animals, you might find yourself wanting to save ALL OF THEM. Personally, I have four rescues- two dogs and two cats- and I’d have more if I wasn’t afraid my husband would divorce me. I had to find other ways that I could help, so I started volunteering at one of our local animal shelters (more on that to come in my next post!). Today I want to talk about one of the easiest things you can do that will make a huge impact- fostering kittens! I am currently fostering two precious little kittens, and it has been so easy and so fun. Anyone can do this. Let’s talk about why and how.
Why?
Three reasons you should foster kittens:
1. Keep them safe! At most shelters, kittens are not adoptable until they are a certain age or reach a certain weight. This is, in my experience, due to the fact that the shelters want to neuter/spay them before they’re adopted. The problem is that a shelter is not an ideal place for kittens. There are sick babies everywhere! To prevent healthy kittens from getting sick, foster parents can take them home until they reach the appropriate age/weight for adoption. Better yet, if they don’t already have cats in their home, foster parents can take home the sick kittens and give them a comfortable place to recover (and possibly prevent spreading it to other kittens at the shelter).
2. Socialize them! When I picked our fosters up a week ago, they were scared of everything. Since we’ve brought them home, they’ve been introduced to (tons of) people, children, dogs, and other cats. Kittens that are waiting to be adopted may have a better chance if they aren’t terrified of the people looking to adopt.
3. Learn about your kittens! As a foster parent, you have the opportunity to learn so much about the kittens, and then share that knowledge with potential adopters. Why is this important? Fewer surprises means fewer bring-backs. Yes, unfortunately, there are times when new pets end up not being a good fit for the family and they are brought back to the shelter. This can be prevented with some information about the animals up front. For example, here’s what I would tell potential adopters about my foster kittens: Varys (with the white) is a little social butterfly. He LOVES people, animals, children, pretty much anything that will pay attention to him. He talks to me every time I walk in the room, so this one may end up being a little mouthy (but so far it seems that he’s just excited to see me!). Tyrion (all orange) is a little bit shy and hasn’t entirely come around to the idea of people yet. He tolerates them, and isn’t as scared as he used to be, but he will need some more work until he’s 100% comfortable. Tyrion may do better in a quiet area for the first several days in his new home, and will definitely need somewhere that he can hide and feel safe. We like to let Tyrion do his own thing and come to us when he’s ready, which he does now, it just takes him a little longer to care that we’re even in the room. As always, I’d recommend these two siblings stay together. Cats just do better in general as a pair, especially siblings. They’re both all about cuddling, playing, and BELLY RUBS!
How?
Three tips for keeping fostering kittens simple:
1. Volunteer! Start by reaching out to a shelter near you, and ask about volunteering/fostering. If you have multiple options, pick somewhere that’s relatively close to your home so that getting to and from the shelter isn’t much out of your way. The shelter you pick will be where you go for all questions that you may have regarding your foster kittens.
2. Supplies! Start by asking your shelter what they will lend you to foster, then follow sales for nearby pet stores. Things you may consider buying: a dog crate (mine is pictured below), a litter box, litter, kitten food. Once you decide to stick with fostering, these are things you can pick up over time when they’re selling for a decent price, and keep for the next babies! If you’re on a budget, here are the things you can use from around the home: blankets, towels, small bowls for food and water, toys (if you have other animals).Having a decent-sized crate has really been the thing that has made fostering kittens the easiest for me, though it’s not necessary if it’s not in your budget. It’s big enough that all their things (litterbox, food, water, blanket, toys) can fit in it and them still be comfortable. It’s also a great way to introduce the kittens to other animals in the home and not have to worry about any aggression they might have. The other option you have is to put the kittens in a small room, secluded from the rest of the house.
3. Keep in touch! Find a shelter with employees that make you feel comfortable asking questions and stick with them. Don’t be scared to reach out and ask questions, and don’t feel like any question is silly. I had my first foster kittens back at the shelter the second day that I had them so the vet could look at them and make sure everything was okay (everything was totally okay- I’m a bit of a hypochondriac). Your shelter should be able/willing to provide health expenses for all fosters also- make sure you ask about this though!
More important than anything else I’ve said, just look at these cuties.
Let me know about your rescues!!
Sara Beth