Why I Foster

I was interviewed this week by a reporter from our local paper about fostering dogs. It’s such a regular part of my life and community now, that I don’t really think of it as novel. It’s just what we do.

But her questions made me think about why I foster and what I get out of it.

Obviously, I foster to save lives. Knowing that I made a difference in the life of not just a dog, but an adopter and shelter staff, is a reward that propels me forward to take in the next dog.

I know that the family that is taking Cherry home today will be blessed with her sweet spirit and grateful heart. I know their days will be enriched by her presence.

And I know that when I message the shelter director to tell her Cherry got a home, she will smile and her heart will be happy, knowing that it’s another big save for her. And hopefully, it helps propel her forward to keep doing what she is doing.

I searched for more answers to that original question the reporter posed again in a different form, and I thought – ‘because it’s fun.’

And it is. My days are so much more interesting because of the animals who share my office/foster cottage. They make me laugh and they make my days much more interesting.

I remember when we started this fostering life. My kids were 17, 14, and 11. If you have kids who are teens and tweens, you know that it’s not always easy to find activities to do together. That’s the moment when your family unit is starting to cleave as friends and futures beckon. Fostering was something that unified us. We could celebrate, collaborate, and sometimes commiserate over the cast of animals that rotated through our house. Even now, when I see my grown-up kids, we often reminisce about our fostering adventures and dogs we still miss (Flannery O’Connor, Mama Bear, the original Frank, Gala, Carla, and of course, the Hamilton puppies come up quite often.)

The other reason I foster is that I simply enjoy getting to know and nurture another soul. Maybe that’s because my kids need me less and I have excess mothering to expend, but I think all of us gain a sense of comfort and purpose knowing we can care for another being and help them grow, of any species.

And then there’s the dog-hearted (and cat-hearted) community that I’ve become a part of—people who are so giving and quirky and loving and fun, who ‘get it’. And don’t mind sacrificing time, money, social lives, and sometimes your carpeting, to help animals.

Why should other people foster? the reporter asked.

I ticked off those same reasons – saving a life, it’s fun, it’s a great family activity, it will enrich your life, but I’ve thought of another reason since that interview.

Because fostering makes you grow. It makes you get outside your own little world and care about someone else’s – the animal that needs you, the people who adopt, and the people you never knew about who are working so hard to change the situation in our shelters. It teaches powerful lesson in resilience, unconditional love, and forgiveness.

It teaches you how much you are willing to do for others, human and animal.

This morning I said goodbye to Cherry and tomorrow Gracie Lou is leaving for a two week ‘vacation’ with another foster (I’ll be leaving on a shelter tour soon). Two of my five kitties have adopters. What was once an overly full house is emptying out.

But Gracie Lou will be back, and puppies will likely follow, and there are always kitties in need.

I’ll be right back in the thick of it soon enough, just the way I like it.

If you’d like to foster dogs or cats, reach out. I’m happy to connect you with an organization that needs you and animals you can save.

It’s a great way of life.

Currently available for adoption:

Gracie Lou: 4-5 year old bulldog mix, couch potato looking for a football fan to share the season with, 50 pounds of snuggly love.

Cinder: teenage cat, sweet, quiet, people-oriented

Boots: 4 months old, friendly, playful, adventurous

Trig: 4 months old, long-haired, loving, independent, playful

Until Each One Has a Home,

Cara

For information on me, my writing, and books, visit CaraWrites.com.

If you’d like regular updates of all our foster dogs past and present, plus occasional dog care/training tips, and occasional foster cat updates (!) be sure to join the Facebook group, Another Good Dog.

And if you’d like to know where all these dogs come from and how you can help solve the crisis of too many unwanted dogs in our shelters, visit WhoWillLetTheDogsOut.org and subscribe to our blog where we share stories of our travels to shelters, rescues, and dog pounds.

If you can’t get enough foster dog stories, check out my book: Another Good Dog: One Family and Fifty Foster Dogs . Or its follow up that takes you to the shelters in the south One Hundred Dogs & Counting: One Woman, Ten Thousand Miles, and a Journey Into the Heart of Shelters and Rescues.

I love to hear from readers and dog-hearted people! Email me at carasueachterberg@gmail.com.

If you’d like to support the work we do (and save the rescue and me some money), shop our Amazon wishlist.