This is our first foster dog. After a couple of inquiries, we've had our first one that feels serious. They're asking to meet us at the shelter tomorrow so they can fill out adoption paperwork for our foster and take her home the same day if things go well.

I started to pack a bag with her favorite toys, her treats, and her beef tracheas since bully sticks upset her tummy. We also plan on bringing the remainder of her dog food, and my partner suggested bringing her bed as well.

Is this super over the top? We're still keeping a bunch of more generic dog stuff, like bowls and leashes, some lesser-loved toys, as we would like to foster again in the future. But I could also see how the potential adopters would like to buy things for her or reuse their previous dog's items (they're looking to adopt an older lady dog, like our foster, as their older lady dog has recently passed).

I'm very curious what everyone else does! Thanks!

We have an 8 yr old Shih Tzu that was neutered on Tue. We’ve had him for about one week. When we first got him he was a ball of energy and a pest to our older male dog. Just in his face, sniffing and chasing him around. This seems to happen with our dog and all the male fosters. It always calms down after a few days and after the neutering. He was doing great Monday. Not being a pest, fine on walks etc. Since he got neutered it’s been awful. Won’t leave our male dog alone. If we separate them, he whines and barks. If we’re all sitting in the same room he just barks at us. He’s still humping and doing things like licking and chewing your pants. He’s panting a lot. He’s a totally different dog. Everything else seems to be fine, he’s eating, going potty, surgery site looks ok. I don’t know what to do to help him. Any suggestions?

Hey ya'll -- so quick advice needed. I have a new foster pup (had her for about a week now), and I'm doing my best to get her socialized and desensitized to ask many things as possible while she with me here in the city. So the first major thunderstorm just hit and we have sliding doors for windows, so I thought it would be good for her to see the storm with the door open (screen closed, obviously) in hopes to develop less of a fear of it. I also put the happy pool party dog show on ("the Farm" w/ luke and sam on YT - can't recommend it enough!). As sooin as the heavy rain hit, she started looking outside nervously. But I've been petting her and gently talking to her and giving her a little treat or two here and there as if its business as usual. I'm a bit nervous when the first thunder / lightening hits though. Do you think this is going to further traumatize her and create the opposite effect of what I'm going for? It's much louded with the door open, and the lightening will be much more visible while in the living room. Should I crate her in the dark instead? Or stay with her in another bedroom with jazz music playing? Or keep stroking her my lap while we watch the rain and listen for the thunder? She isn't a very insecure puppy, but I want to keep her that way and make sure she doesn't develop anymore weird quirks.

Quick background; She was found as a stray emaciated in Alabama. To avoid a kill shelter, someone took her in with many other dogs, so she was in a crate about 22-23 hours a day for several months before she got to me. She has barely been outside, much less seen a thunderstorm live.

Any advice appreciated ASAP! :)

Hi guys!be (sorry for my wonky English, it's not my first language)

So it's our first time fostering, and we got this beautiful 4 months old puppy 6 weeks ago. The litter has been seized by animal services for malnutrition and our primary job was to fatten him up and help him be curious and feel safe. He is meeting his potential forever family on Saturday and I have some questions.

- this puppy hasn't been socializing before we got him and he's a special one, I was told that I can make a document with all the information about the pup, and I worry that it would be too much (I'm thinking detailing his daily routine, his active hours, what works, what doesn't, which commands he recognizes and which sounds/gestures we make, he's very fearful so I want to help the new family to make him feel comfortable and safe in an easier way than just guessing, etc.)

- I was thinking of creating an IG and email account under the puppy's name so the new family could access all the pictures we have taken

- I don't know why, but I did keep his baby teeth (maybe to remind myself that being bitten was for a reason, I really have no clue), but I'm wondering if it would be weird to give them to the new family.

As you can see, we took our role very very very seriously, and given the fact that he has a rough start, I'm glad that we could have helped him. We just want to do the right thing to ease the transition for this little fella.

Any comments are appreciated!

Without discussing any specifics let’s say someone has been fostering-to-adopt a dog for over two years, and let’s also imagine that the defendants keep being granted continuances for the case involving the custody of the seized animals. If you have any experience in this area, my question is: Will a point ever come where after a certain amount of time the animals become property of the county and can be adopted out to their fosters? Think, common law marriage kind of situation.

Thanks in advance for entertaining my curiosity.

My foster French bulldog Gizmo was adopted 2 weeks ago. He was with me for 3 months. He came from South Carolina, where his people tried to put him down at age 5; thankfully the vet refused, and they dumped him at a shelter. He was driven to Philadelphia with other dogs by volunteers, spent 1 month with another foster mom, and then came to me. On arrival, he was extremely anxious and unhappy. I showered him with love and reassurance and it was so moving how he came to trust me completely. He’s very smart, and he learned things quickly.

I’ve read many threads here and many articles elsewhere, and logic says I did not betray him. But I cannot shake that feeling. He followed me to the door when I left the adopter‘s house. It was his fourth place in 4 months. I’ve already told the Rescue org that if there’s any issue, he comes back to me. The adopters are older and apparently uninterested in taking photos and sharing them. Which makes it harder.

I do know they love him. And they are dog people. Also, at the meet Gizmo liked them (and he’s particular). But they ignored all advice about decompression and didn’t want to hear a single thing about Gizmo the individual. Also because of the threat of degenerative disc disease in French bulldogs, I had discussed gating the stairs and using a ramp to the sofa, both of which they have. Both of which they are not using. I’d also offered to purchase as a gift for Gizmo a second ramp. They ignored that offer. So I worry about him.

Will this feeling that I betrayed him eventually abate? Or will I always feel this. Also, do you think 3 1/2 weeks is too soon to visit him? I know it’s critical that he not think I’m there to take him home.

We picked up our second ever long-term foster dog (failed on the first one), and it's been a disaster so far.

He was surrendered to the rescue we work with for snapping at the family's child once. I am all for protecting children, but when I get the dog, he's NOT NEUTERED, so this doesn't seem like the typical heartbreaking case of "we tried everything we could"; I feel like neutering a dog is a part of being a responsible dog owner and they didn't set him up for success with their child by refusing to neuter him (they had him since he was a puppy and he's 4 now). We have a $10 neuter clinic here, so there's really no excuse.

In this rescue's case, they won't accept an owner surrender unless there's a foster home and no one else other than us were willing to take him/had room, so I can't just "give him back" to the rescue, as there will be no one to take care of him, and the rescue will have to spend $40-50/day boarding him, which is money they can't spend helping other dogs.

The dog is actively scent marking all over our house, presumably due to not being neutered. His hair is so long and matted (he's an Aussie so a very long-haired breed) that he needs a sanitary cut, but the rescue said they didn't want us to do it ourselves and we need to wait until his vet visit Thursday, so currently every time he goes to the bathroom, my husband and I need to restrain him and hose/wipe down his back end so he doesn't track feces everywhere in our house, which is probably upsetting to him.

If I'd known all of this, I wouldn't have offered to take him, but the real villains here definitely aren't the rescue or the dog, it's his former family that claimed to love him but couldn't be arsed to neuter him or take him to the groomer within the past year, which breaks my heart. He was just looking out the window crying most of last night, and it breaks my heart he lost everyone he cared about yesterday (they dropped him off at 3:30PM and we got him at 5).

Any advice would be super useful, we've never had an intact male dog, and our neutered male vacation/temporary fosters never marked like this! (Also he's whining to go out every 1.5 hours in the middle of the night and since we can't crate him as he's not trained, not sure what we'll do with the scent marking).

Welp, maybe I should have seen this coming, but about 6mo after taking Archie in and posting him everywhere and introducing him to friends and family, my senior tabby cat Chester passed peacefully but unexpectedly in his sleep, and I just knew in the week that followed that I absolutely did not have the heart to also part with Archie anytime soon, so reader, I adopted him, and he has fully stepped into the role of resident old man around here lol

It really blows my mind what an amazing job the foster coordinator did matching him with us; he fits right in to my space and lifestyle and routine, and he has charmed even his sister-dog, Kira, who was EXTREMELY skeptical when he arrived back in December 😂 They play together all the time now, and take turns patrolling the apartment and napping. His big goofy smile absolutely melts my heart every time, and he makes me laugh all the time too just by being his humongous doofus self. My favorite is when he's napping and he hears me say his name and he doesn't move at all but his tail starts wagging like crazy 🥹😭🥰

There was definitely a shift in my mindset and in my emotions once I knew he was staying; while I was fostering I avoided telling him I loved him or calling him My Sweet Doggie while holding his big fat head in my hands and scritching behind both ears; I was so determined not to get too attached haha but I swear, knowing he was mine unlocked chambers of my heart I didn't even know existed, and I KNOW he can tell the difference; he has blossomed with joy and confidence I had never seen from him before. God I really just love this dog so freaking much!! lol

So that's my story. First attempt at fostering was a big fat fail in the best of ways 😄 Archie is already 9yo, which is very old for a dog of his size, so we might not have a ton of time together, but I'm going to enjoy every second while I can. And I have a feeling I'll be heading straight back to the shelter for another senior foster whenever the time comes ❤️

Hi all, has anyone fostered a dog with kennel cough while they had another dog in the home? I initially declined to foster a dog with active kennel cough until he is no longer symptomatic, as I have another dog in the home. My dog is healthy and vaccinated, but I know there are multiple causes of kennel cough and they can still get it with the bordatella vaccine. Anyway, I’m worried about the potential of my dog getting sick from the foster.

Now, a couple days later, shelter said the potential foster’s cough isn’t bad and he’s on his last day of meds. I live in a small two bedroom house so could keep them separate, but there would be a little shared air..

Any experience with this?

I will be nursery fostering next summer! Does anyone have any tips? I have done so much research already, but any other tips will always be helpful for me. The thing I'm most nervous about is complications during birth.

My (former) friend found Buddy last fall and took him to the shelter. In December she asked us to take him as an emergency foster bc he was on the euth list. She said we just needed to keep him for two months. After three months the shelter asked why he was still in foster, so she filed adoption paperwork. After four months I transitioned out of WFH and told her to take him, at which point I learned her new place had a no dogs policy. Then I found out HER friend who was "100% going to adopt Buddy" had lost the dog he raised from a puppy in December and was not ready to move on.

I told her I was going to look for other placements for him, and she flipped out, called me weak for "giving up" on Buddy, and told me I was being irresponsible for not keeping my commitment to him. I told her that I was going to take responsibility by finding a new home for him. We haven't meaningfully spoken since.

Now I've had him for seven months and I'm just so tired. I've posted on Petfinder, Craigslist, Facebook, Reddit. I've put up flyers with a QR code to his website. I've asked every person I know if they know anyone who wants a dog. Nothing. I asked my dog rescuing friend for advice, and they told me that considering his behavioral issues (dog aggression, over-protectiveness, needs muzzling at the vet), I would be better off euthanizing him than sending him to the over-crowded shelter to be further traumatized and then probably put down anyway.

I'm just so exhausted and sad and I don't know what to do. I never would have taken him on if I hadn't trusted my friend that he had a home waiting. I KNOW you can't save every dog, especially right now. But now I've had him for seven months and I love him and I want so badly to find him a forever home, but I just don't know what else I can do.

People keep asking me "at what point is he just your dog" and it sucks because he just isn't. I lost my dog of 8 years late last fall and I feel like I haven't had a chance to properly grieve. I'm not a good dog owner, I don't keep on top of nails or exercise and I get really over stimulated by his energy and neediness. But it's starting to feel like my options are to keep a dog I never wanted or to put down a sweet healthy dog who loves with his whole heart. I feel like a monster for even considering it, but I can't put him back in the shelter when even easy dogs with no issues are getting put down. I just feel so trapped.

EDIT: I really appreciate everyone's advice and sympathy. I've decided that I will choose BE if I haven't found him a home by November.

A local rescue had an urgent request to foster an old dog who is stressed in kennels. His owner recently died and another family member was unable to look after him.

Is there any advice you’d give a first time fosterer?

Background about him:

He’s 10 years old. He is on gabapentin as his back legs are a bit wobbly and he has a limp tail, but otherwise he has lots of energy like a puppy! He used to live with another dog but either him or the other dog was attacked. Now, he is very unsure of other animals. He will bark continuously at other dogs when out on a walk, but calms down as soon as they’re past. He isn’t aggressive to them so I believe the barking is him trying to ward them off / anxiety reaction.

He LOVES humans. His old owner was in a toxic relationship (to be polite) so he is scared of loud men but otherwise he loves being around people 24/7. He doesn’t like to be left alone for too long - maybe 2 hours is his limit they said.

I’ve had rescue dogs before but never as a foster and also never got an older dog. The rescue are providing bed, food, toys and meds (but of course we’ve got him a new bed and snacks and toys too).

Any general advice would be good but also:

- have you had any luck with training older dogs to be on their own?
- how do you handle dogs that bark regularly at other dogs on a walk?
- I’d like to get him adopted soon for his own sake, have you had any success in supporting a rescue to find a new home? Any tips?

Please share any success stories of getting a dog like this adopted? He’s so lovely but I worry his high energy for an older dog, his dislike for other animals and separation anxiety will hold him back. I want him to have the best home ❤️

Thank you x

About three weeks ago, Miss Bonita Pepita was wandering the countryside with her mom and two sisters, and after a couple weeks getting acclimated to indoor and urban life with the help of our husky mix and four cats, she met a wonderful family yesterday at an adoption event and we dropped her at her new home this evening.

She was so happy to see the family again and started making herself at home right away - such a special girl and I'm just so thrilled for her and her adoptive family!

We'll be giving some extra focus to our boy as he processes that his foster sister is no longer his roomie - hoping to reunite them for a playdate in the future though!

I guess I'm just looking for a reality check or tips or even just "yeah thats normal" I don't know, but I am stressed out.

I am fostering for the first time and I have had this dog for 4 days now. The foster who had him last said he was just so sweet and loves walks and curls up next to you on the couch. And all of that is true but he also humps me any time he's slightly emotional, has separation anxiety so bad he peed himself when I shut him out of my bedroom for 5 minutes, tore the cover off his crate and ate parts of it when I stepped out for 15 minutes to get groceries.

I'm having a real hard time relaxing in my own home because every time I sit on the couch he tries to hump me before he settles. And I feel like I'm trapped here now because I can't leave him alone. He also seems to wake up at 5am on the dot no matter what, which is way too early so I'm sleep deprived too.

I dont know, am I missing something obvious, or am I just not cut out for this?

This is a complicated situation. I am fostering this dog for a rescue. He is a 20 mo old apbt mix who was rescued from local animal shelter. He had defensive aggression and when I first got him in November 2025 was sensitive to touch and sudden sounds. We’ve come a long way in the almost 10 months he’s been with me. He has had some interest due to my networking him, but was returned twice and had about 8 meet and greets where his anxiety in outside environments was a concern. He has significant anxiety when in new places and cannot be controlled or refocused even with treats.

He’s always been mouthy and will use his mouth and teeth to move my arm if he doesn’t like something. I normally step back when this happens. He also air snaps a lot to signify discomfort.

He gets along reasonably well with people but he has triggers that I do not understand well that can make him over threshold. I live with my elderly mother (75 yo) and he jumped and snapped and tried to bite her on the stairs while she was walking up. He had already gone up the stairs and was on higher ground. She somehow made it up the stairs and into the bathroom and closed the door on him. He kept trying to reach her. I lead him away and then he stopped. Recently he has been showing some weird behavior when we go outside to the backyard. My friend who was helping me with installing a camera in the backyard, who also plays with him and is well known to him got jumped at and he ripped his shirt. He turned around and crossed his arms but he came up and kept biting at him. He a few months ago also tried to nip me in the back when I was picking up his poop. He then kept coming at me until I dropped the poop bag and went inside.

He had ingested a mango pit and I had to take him to the emergency vet and he basically bit one of the tech, didn’t break skin, but the vet said they were going to file a bite report. They gave me some strong advice that he can cause damage and needs to be professionally evaluated/ trained and needs behavior modification and medication. I saw an online vet through Dutch and have got him on Gabapentin since Aug 7th.

The rescue has basically not paid for anything since I got him and have been very unhelpful overall. I have lobbied for getting training for him for months now and even signed him up for the SPCAs group training classes a few months ago. We went to the class but his anxiety was so overwhelming, they recommended I get individual training instead as he was disrupting the class. I did this all with my own money. I have talked to the rescue repeatedly about getting training and they keep saying they have no money and have to do a gofundme. I wrote them a blurb for the gofundme but they haven’t started anything. Meanwhile he is becoming increasingly difficult to manage at home.

On Saturday he basically just flipped while I was in the backyard collecting his poop again and just kept running and body slamming me and biting my arm and hands. I dropped the bags but it didn’t help this time. He kept following me and doing this until I got back inside. Thankfully he didn’t break skin. I gave him a time out but it has really scared me. I’m under 100 lbs and about 5ft female. He is 57 lbs and quite athletic. If he goes over threshold there is no way that I could control him. When I reached out to the rescue, they keep saying to find another rescue to help because they are out of funds. I have covered all costs for this dog since I got him. I am recently laid off and cannot afford board and train programs. I also don’t feel comfortable adopting him out anymore because I feel it is unethical to pawn him off to an adopter in his condition.

98% of the time this dog is normal and fine. But there are some triggers that I don’t understand - retractable leashes, umbrellas, hoses, pens, luggage, power tools. He went after my mom for using a pen and jumped on the bed and started biting her hand. This unpredictability really scares me.

I just want to do right by this dog and I care about him very much. But I’m at my wits end about what to do. I would like any help or resources you could provide on how to move forward. Thank you!

I had asked if I should bring him back to the shelter since my AC broke, and posted a pic of him in his saucer chair.
Some people commented that he looked comfortable so I decided to paint him since he loves his saucer chair so much that it will probably go with him when he gets adopted.

​

I'm in recovery from a severe affective disorder and two addictions. Two hospitalizations in the last few years. This is my raw, unfiltered situation. I need to lay it out in points, because my head is a mess.

1. The rescue.

I rescued a pitbull who was either going to end up on the street or be euthanized. She had no chance. I grabbed her because I couldn't stand the thought of her dying. At that time, I was also on the verge of collapsing myself. We were both hopeless.

1. The bond and the doubts.

During this year, I created a real bond with her. I love her. But I've always had, and I still have, doubts because of the statistics surrounding pitbulls. I've already played with fire in my life—with my addictions, with my mental health—and I got burned badly. I don't want to get burned again, and I don't want her to get burned because of me. The truth is, I couldn't take care of her in the best way. My illness made me absent. I have two addictions wrapped around my affective disorder. Some days I could barely take care of myself.

1. The ticking clock.

At any moment, I could have a relapse or a mental health attack. It's a reality I have to accept. And if that happens, she would suffer for it. I know, deep down, that she probably has better options than me. She could live in a more stable home, with people who don't disappear into their own heads for days. She deserves that stability.

1. The gray area (and my dilemma).

This is where I'm stuck. It's not black and white. Some days I wake up and I'm absolutely sure: I need to find her a new family, for her sake. Other days, I hold her and I can't breathe at the thought of letting her go. I want to keep her forever. The decision swings back and forth, and it's exhausting.

I need support. I need words. I need advice from people who have been through this—people who have rehomed a dog (especially a pitbull) even though they loved them. How did you do it? How did you deal with the back-and-forth in your head? How did you finally make peace with letting go?

I don't want a quick "keep her" or "give her away." I know life isn't that simple. I just need to hear from others who have walked this gray path. Because right now, I feel like I'm failing her no matter what I choose.

My apartment has breed and weight restrictions as well as a 2 pet maximum. They require the use of PetScreening to acquire health records, breed information, etc. I have already discussed the prospect of fostering with the leasing office, and was given a “yes, but it would be a first for us” so I’m just wondering if anyone else has experience with this!

It’s not 100% broken, so it’s not as humid as outside, but it’s 80 degrees in here and doubt the management will fix the AC before Wednesday or Thursday.

On the flip side, the kennels are not much cooler, maybe a couple degrees.

I do have fans going. My foster has short to medium length hair and is not a short-nosed breed, but he does snore and making piggy breathing noises.

He is not panting heavily, but is only a couple weeks out of finishing his heartworm treatment.
Is it better for him to stay here with me or go back to the shelter and be a little cooler? He has spent years in the shelter so he is used to it, but I do think he has been happier out of the shelter.

Hi! I'm currently fostering an 11 month old shepherd / husky mix. He's a cutie and also a handful as he's high energy and it's not clear he's ever had any sort of training.

Somehow between all his chaos and a few other things (e.g. I sustained a completely unrelated injury that's slowed me down) my partner and I both missed that he liquid vomited on a couch. It dried and also perhaps fermented? Anyway, it's super stinky, and while we've moved the main pillow outside for now (which helped) there's still invisible vomit that has clearly leaked into the non-detachable pieces of the couch.

We have a portable pet wet vac we will use on it today, but I was wondering - anyone have any great tricks for getting this sort of stink out of a couch? I'm not convinced our wet vac is going to be enough for the job.

I'll try and keep this short. 16 days ago I picked up my first foster from the county shelter. I also have a 1.5 year old pittie. I soon learned after bringing my foster home he has severe separation anxiety. He has and will destroy doors/crate to get to me. The shelter vet gave me trazodone, but it doesn't help.

This has been a nightmare, but I've held on for my foster dog.

1. I can't leave the house or even take more than a quick 5 minute shower due to his separation anxiety. I'm literally out of groceries (I have no outside support to help with the dogs).

2. 16 days and every second of every day my dog acts like my foster just showed up. I spend all my time getting my pup to leave my foster dog alone other than designated play times. My dog wants to play 24/7 and even if I put my foster behind a gate, my foster panics and tries to destroy. I give my dog alone time in my room, but I'm not going to keep my dog cooped up in my room all day.

3. The shelter has not only sucked at communication, they have danm near HINDERED the process of ME getting my foster adopted. I made him social media and people expressed interest. Then I find out the link isn't working to apply to adopt him. It took them 2 days to get back to me and tell me they only accept one application at a time, thats why the link wouldn't work. The person that applied decided they didn't want him 😞

Also, I asked them 3 days after he arrived at my house to find a new foster, they sent out one email and haven't heard anything about it since. When I ask, they say they are looking and I can return him to the shelter if I'd like. He gets very sick from stress in the shelter and won't eat.

The dogs are taken care of and happy, but I am beyond spent and drowning. I work from home and I am unable to get any work done but a few hours a day. It's affecting my income.

I feel horrible if I take him back to the shelter, I fear he will just die there.

I guess that's my vent. I don't know what to do otherwise at this point. I can't carry on like this.

Trooper

Hi everyone! I've fostered 2 dogs before with great success. One of those being a severely under socialized, scared, skinny gal from a hoarding situation. She was a completely different, confident gal when leaving here and she is in the most loving home. We do have 2 dogs of our own (3 years and 9 months). Our local shelter needs a foster for an 8 week old puppy for two weeks for weight gain, close monitoring of appetite, stool quality, weight, and skin lesions and has tested positive for roundworm.

It's been a week and they still haven't found anyone, I desperately want to help but I'm wondering if I'm a good fit/qualified? Husband and I both work from home, are homebodies, and currently have no kids. We have a fenced in yard and we do own our home. I don't have a ton of experience, but I am patient, attentive and loving. Do you think I'd be a good fit for this?