FOSTER CARE PROGRAM
Foster homes are a vital part of our adoption program. We want every animal brought to us to have a chance for a long and happy life. Because of our limited space and resources we are not always able to care for all those homeless animals that need us. That’s where you come in! By fostering you help us expand our capacity to care for homeless animals beyond the walls of our facility. As a Foster Care Volunteer, you offer your time, energy and home to animals in need and JCHS provides the training, supplies and veterinary care you need to successfully care for foster pets. Fostering truly does save lives!
FOSTER CARE VOLUNTEER RESPONSIBILITIES
- Provide a safe, clean and caring environment.
- Provide food, water, litter, toys/enrichment and shelter.
- Provide exercise and socialization if appropriate.
- Monitor for physical and mental well-being.
- Transport to/from any necessary vet appointments.
- Transport to/from offsite adoption events.
- Actively participate in marketing your foster pet.

the benefits of fostering
There are so many benefits to opening your home to foster a dog or cat! Here are just a few:

Enjoy animal companionship without a lifetime commitment

Help an animal recover from an illness or injury

Give extra TLC to puppies or kittens too young to be adopted

Help reduce an animal’s stress from living in the shelter environment

Animals in Need of Foster Homes

Orphan Kittens
Sadly every year we take in a number of kittens who have lost their mom. These babies need round the clock care. They will need to be bottle fed until they are old enough to eat on their own.

Nursing Moms With Babies
We often get moms with their litter of puppies or kittens. Sit back and let mom do all the work for you while you enjoy all the snuggles!

Animals Recovering From Illness/Injury
We sometimes have animals that have undergone a medical procedure or are receiving ongoing veterinary care and aren't yet available for adoption. The shelter isn't the best environment for healing so we often send these animals to foster homes while they recover.

Socialization
Some animals come to us having had very little interaction with humans. The shelter can be a scary place to try to learn to trust humans. Our Foster Care Volunteers give these animals the boost they need to become family pets.

Cage Break
Shelter life can be stressful. Sometimes a short break can help. Cage breaks allow us to learn more about who the animal is, increases their chances of adoption and gives them the opportunity to relax and have fun!
OUR Foster program is growing
We believe foster is the future of animal rescue and we’ve been working hard and making great strides to improve and grow our Foster Care Program. We’re steadily building our network of Foster Care Volunteers which has resulted in increased numbers of animals being placed in foster care each year!
FOSTER CARE FAQ
Are you curious about fostering? Here are some of the questions we’re frequently asked about becoming a Foster Care Volunteer:
A lot of our Foster Care A lot of our Foster Care Volunteers are also parents. Children in the home will be a factor in determining which animals are placed into your home but will not prevent you from fostering. Providing foster care to an animal in need is a wonderful activity for the entire family!
- Provide a safe, clean and caring environment.
- Provide food, water, toys/enrichment and shelter.
- Provide exercise and socialization as appropriate.
- Monitor any medical and/or behavioral problems.
- Transport to/from any necessary medial appointments.
- Actively participate in marketing your foster animal.
The first step in becoming a Foster Care Volunteer is to fill out our online Foster Application and complete the online orientation and questionnaire that follows. Our Foster Coordinator will review your application and orientation questionnaire results and will contact you within 72 hours.
Do you own a farm? We need you!
From time to time our Humane Agents encounter farm animals who have been abused and neglected and need temporary foster homes while their cases are pending. We are unable to care for these types of animals at the shelter and as such we rely on foster homes. We’re looking to build a list of farm animal Foster Care Volunteers. If you’re able to provide a foster home for farm animals we’d love to hear from you! Email us at jchsfoster@jc-hs.org or give us a call at (740) 314-5583.

Contact us
Questions about foster care? We’re here to help!