Thanks for your interest in fostering!
Foster parents are the backbone of Heavenly Creatures! It’s through the kindness of people opening up their hearts and homes that we are able to house animals and thereby save their lives.
Fostering a homeless animal not only helps that animal, but is also usually a rewarding experience for the foster volunteer; you get to see a furry orphan blossom because of your TLC and go on to find a loving home – it does a heart good!
Fostering for Heavenly Creatures begins with us either receiving a foster application from you, or at least receiving your phone number, so that we can call you to go over our foster screening questions, our foster process and policies.
Our foster application can be found here.
If you are approved to foster, we’ll deliver the animal to your home, so that we can see where they will be staying (in rare cases, if we are extremely busy that week, we will have you pick the animal up and – in lieu of the home visit – send us photos of your pets and your environment).
We bring your foster animal’s food and supplies with them as well as the foster agreement that you will need to sign.
Below are some commonly asked questions and answers about fostering for Heavenly Creatures.
Q: Do I need to have any previous fosterexperience or animal ownership experience?
A: No experience is necessary to become a foster volunteer. We are here to explain the care that the animal needs and for support after you start. We’ll check on the animal by phone call, text or e-mail regularly and are always here in the interim should you have any questions or concerns.
There are multiple types of foster situations ranging from babies who need to be bottle-fed, to adult pets who are recovering from surgeries (and you will have the opportunity to choose which types of foster situations fit your lifestyle).
Q: Will fostering cost me anything?
No. While you are fostering, all food and supplies are provided (unless you choose to provide them yourself) and all vet care is covered.
Our animals come vet examined and our adults (six months or older) come spayed or neutered.
Our cats are tested for Feleuk and FIV and both new cat and dog arrivals are given a dose or two of flea and worm medication as a precaution (even if there is no evidence of parasites).
If the animal starts showing signs of sickness while in foster care, we are but a phone call away and will line up a vet appointment or emergency care, as the case might be.
Q: What sorts of animals need foster care?
A: Heavenly Creatures only rescues dogs and cats. If you are interested in fostering other types of animals such as bunnies, rats and hamsters, please look up local rescue group Hoppy Homes.
These days it is primarily cats who need fosterhomes, as there is no longer a dog overpopulation in the province (excepting parts of Labrador). However, we do sometimes have dogs in need of foster care.
Q: How long will I be fostering?
A: There is no set foster period. How long you foster is up to you.
The average animal that we rescue takes a few weeks to a few months to find the right home.
We, of course, prefer to keep an animal in one foster home until such time as they find an adoptive home (animals, like people, do best with stability/consistency).
However, we will certainly move the animal to a new foster home if the animal has not yet been adopted and you cannot continue fostering for whatever reason.
How long it takes an animal to be adopted very much depends on the animal.
Completely socialized, healthy animals are usually adopted more quickly whereas some of the animals coming into our care need socialization or have temporary illnesses that mean they won’t be ready for adoption right away.
Q: Do I need transportation in order to foster?
A: No. We can deliver more supplies to you (as opposed to you picking them up from our office) and volunteers can transport your fosteranimal to their vet appointments should they require them.
What you do need is the following: Time to commit to the animal, a telephone, a spare room (in some cases), and if you are renting, permission from the home owner.
Whether you rent or own, you will also need permission to foster from any adults residing with you.
Q: How does my foster animal find an adoptive home and what is the adoption process?
A: We will advertise the animal on our websiteas well as our Facebook page and our Facebook group (we have both).
This is partly why we ask you to keep us in pictures of your foster animal and to send us a personality write-up about them.
If a prospective adoptive family has been approved for adoption, we will set up a time for them to meet the animal at your home at a time that works for both of you.
If the meeting goes well, the animal will be delivered to the adoptive family’s home (just as they were delivered to you) a day or three afterward – again, depending on your schedule and theirs.
if you don’t have transportation or aren’t comfortable delivering your foster animal to their new home yourself, we will arrange for a volunteer to do that.
Q: What if I get attached to the foster animal and want to keep them myself?
A: Foster parents usually have first right of refusal. As long as there is no reason for us to think that you are not a suitable long term home, we are delighted for your foster animal to get to become a permanent member of the family.
We can count on one hand the how many fosterparents in our twenty years of existence we have not permitted to adopt their foster animals.
If you wish to adopt your foster animal, you will have to sign adoption paperwork and pay the adoption fee; our adoption fees help us pay for veterinary fees.
We hope this has been informative. If you have any questions that weren’t answered above, please leave us a message at 739-0077 or e-mail us: heavenlycreaturesca@gmail.com
CAN’T FOSTER BUT WANT TO HELP?
If you aren’t able to foster, but want to help us save lives, you can make a donation toward the costs of keeping an animal safe and healthy in a foster home.