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As a foster person, you will be required to
fill out a comprehensive application form. If
your application is approved, we will conduct
a home visit. If all goes well, we will match
you up with a rescue supervisor. Keep in mind
that your environment might not be suitable
for certain dogs, and it will be up to your
rescue supervisor to make that decision.
You will be responsible for the day-to-day
care of your foster dog including their housing,
feeding, and visits to the vet. The minimum
vet care required before for all our rescue
dogs is spay/neuter, vaccinations (distemper,
Parvo virus, Leptospirosis, rabies and Bordatella),
heartworm test and monthly preventative for
heartworm and flea/tick while in your care.
If the dog has not already had this minimum
vet care or there are no records available,
you will be responsible for getting this done.
All veterinary care (besides emergency care)
must be authorized by your supervisor. You will
be required to make every attempt at house training,
crate training, leash training, and socialization
where needed.
You should be prepared to crate your foster
dog at night and whenever you are not around
to supervise him/her. Rescue dogs must NEVER
be left alone with your own dogs or children
without supervision. If you do not own a crate,
one will be provided to you. Your rescue supervisor
person will provide an ID tag with NEBCR, Inc.'s
800 number on it, which must be placed on the
dog's collar. You will be expected to provide
a secure environment where the dog cannot wander
off. You will need to keep records so that you
may be reimbursed adequately for any out of
pocket expenses for veterinary care and other
expenses authorized by your supervisor.
All sorts of foster dogs may come into your
care - purebreds and occasionally mixes. NEBCR,
Inc. tends to get mostly young males, but also
gets females, senior dogs and on rare occasions,
puppies. A lot of the dogs are between 1-5 years
of age. If a dog placed in your care needs basic
training, you may be asked to attend an obedience
class or consult with a behaviorist (you will
be reimbursed for these expenses). You will
be asked to communicate with your rescue supervisor
on a regular basis with frequent updates on
the status and progress of the dog.
The dogs we get are often strays or owner relinquishments,
surrendered to us by shelters in our area. Most
dogs are given up because the owner could not
deal with such a high energy dog, or the "quirks"
common to the breed. If you know the breed (and
we hope you do) you know that Border Collies
often do not mix well with small children, and
we frequently get dogs that are "herding"
children, which may involve growling, baring
their teeth or even nipping.
Some of the dogs come from abusive or neglectful
situations. Dogs sometimes have health problems
related to abuse or neglect, or just from being
in a shelter. Very few have any formal training,
and many have not had much socialization with
other dogs and/or people. There may be significant
behavior issues to overcome such as: barking,
marking, separation anxiety, shyness, or just
a general lack of control and manners. We feel
very lucky when we get a well-cared for, partially
trained, well-adjusted dog with a good temperament!
Dogs are often on their best behavior the first
week or two, and it is not until they start
feeling comfortable in your household that they
begin to exhibit negative behaviors (or sometimes
positive behaviors). You will generally need
at least two weeks to be able to properly evaluate
a dog's temperament and personality. Furthermore,
if the dog does not have a previous health record
or it comes from a shelter, it can take at least
two weeks to properly evaluate his/her health
condition. Dogs that need a great deal of basic
training and socialization can take even longer.
Our job (and yours) is to shape all of these
dogs into dogs we can successfully place. This
takes time and effort. Dogs are in foster homes
for anywhere from two weeks to a month or two.
Dogs in foster care for longer than two months
are rare, but possible. We do not feel it is
in the best interest of most rescue dogs to
be bounced around, and we ask that all our foster
homes be willing to care for their dogs as long
as it takes to find them a proper home. We understand
that occasionally a dog may need to be moved,
and will make every attempt to do so as quickly
as possible.
Being a foster person can be extremely rewarding,
especially when you get your first update on
your foster dog with his new family, and the
story of how well he did when they took him
to his first agility class. Before you make
your decision to foster, however, you must be
sure that everyone in your household is committed
to the idea of becoming a foster family.
If you have a frequent child care provider
in your home, are they aware of the commitment
you are considering?
If your child care provider is under 21 years
of age, are their parents aware of the commitment
you are considering?
Do you have pets of your own that would not
do well with the addition of a foster dog
to the family?
If you have dogs of your own, do they get
along with other dogs? Are they up to date
on all their vaccinations, including kennel
cough, and heartworm tested and on preventative?
And are you really committed to this idea,
and that when the going gets tough, will you
stick it out (with help and support from your
supervisor and other NEBCR volunteers), or will
you give up and request that the dog be removed
from your home, thereby complicating their life
once again?
If you are really looking to adopt a dog, you
should probably fill out an adoption application
rather than a foster care application. Fostering
doesn't prohibit adoption, but we do not view
fostering as just a way of "trying out"
your next dog. Foster people will still be responsible
for an adoption fee if they adopt their foster
dog.
Congratulations for
making it this far!
If you have decided that, despite everything
we said above, you want to join us as a foster
home, we thank you and welcome you. Please click
below and go to our Foster Care Provider Application
and Contract.
FOSTER
CARE PROVIDER APPLICATION AND CONTRACT
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