Fostering

[Jessica H]

I hope this is not off topic but I know people here foster Cairns. I do not plan on fostering Cairns but I would like to foster either a lab or lab mix. I have never done this before and I would like to try it. I am just way too afraid I will get attached too easily.

I have spoken with the rescue league and it is going to be something that I foster dogs until I find one I would like to keep. I want to get a bigger dog BUT I need to be sure that it gets along with Sadie and Scooter and my 2 cats. I also do not want a puppy, I want an older dog which is housebroken and calmer than a puppy would be, I am looking for ages 3-6.

My questions are:

1. How do your dogs adjust to having a different dog every so often?

2. Have you introduced older dogs to your older Cairns? (by old I mean not puppies)

3. Is it really hard when they leave? (I am afraid I will get the first one and it will hate my dogs, kill my cats and I will be too much of a sucker to let it leave, I am a sucker)

4. Have your dogs ever gotten really attached and/or depressed when the dog leaves?

Thanks for the advice!

[Kramersmom]

I have a friend that fosters and rescues Huskys. She has the breed as her pets, 3 of them. She fosters until they find a good home. She said if she rescued and fostered to keep them she would have a house full plus some. She loves them all and is sad when they leave but, she said there is nothing like fostering a rescue then finding it a new loving home. She does rescue/fostering for the love of the breed. She knows the breed well, when fostering it is you who trys to make changes, training, if there are issues the foster parent trys to behave them, potty train if needed so there ready to go to a new home. I know my friend does alot with these huskys so they get a new home. I know in her case it is not easy, its work and devotion. Some come in as strays, back yard breeders, some pregnant and somew seniors and the list goes on. I dont know how she does what she does but she loves the breed, I guess it would be like us fostering cairns, we would do everything possable to find them a good loving home to make there life the best, we love the breed.

Good luck

[Sarah]

1. How do your dogs adjust to having a different dog every so often?

My dog, Henry, loves it. He is very friendly, though, and loves any and all dogs he sees. He doesn't display any jealousy and shares toys just fine. We've had problems with fosters not wanting to share and we adjusted, but otherwise everything has always been fine.

2. Have you introduced older dogs to your older Cairns? (by old I mean not puppies)

I introduced a 12-13 year old to Henry when he was a little over a year old (so not baby puppy, but not older, either). She was very sick (skin problems, cancer, teeth issues, etc) and Henry seemed to understand. He left her alone unless she initiated play.

3. Is it really hard when they leave? (I am afraid I will get the first one and it will hate my dogs, kill my cats and I will be too much of a sucker to let it leave, I am a sucker)

It was hard when the first one left, and is always a little hard, but I think that I might stay a little detached. I know that they aren't staying, so I do my best to make sure they're prepared to be great pets for other people.

4. Have your dogs ever gotten really attached and/or depressed when the dog leaves?

I think dogs are pretty adaptable. We visit family members with dogs and then have to leave, see dogs on walks that don't come home with us, etc. He seems to just go with the flow and play while he can with whatever dog happens to be around.

I caught him sleeping in the crate that one of our fosters used (a dog close to his age that we had the longest), so I think he might've recognized that the dog was gone and missed him, but I wouldn't necessarily call it depression.

It's fun, but hard work! Good luck!

[jetersmom]

I started fostering two cairn littermates in December. They are one year old. I placed one with his new mommy last weekend and I still have his littermate. The rescue organization that I volunteer with are completely supportive and coach the foster parent(s) on how to introduce the foster dog to the resident dogs. Because this is only my first experience I can't tell you how my pups will adapt to "different foster dogs" down the line. I can tell you that they have been wonderful with these two fosters. My two are male. These two were male. My dogs have not started marking or doing anything naughty in response to having their new house guests. I am really proud of how they have reacted. I don't know how things would be with a female foster.

It is quite difficult not to get attached and to send your foster to their forever home. I drove two and a half hours to meet my foster's forever mom this past weekend. Her parting words were "Laura I am really going to love him". I cried a good forty-five minutes on the way home. Once I got some emails and phone calls from her telling me how she was doing with him, I felt very happy for him. I know now that she meant what she said. I think if you know in your heart that they are going to a really good home, you can cope with saying good-bye.

When I first got the foster furkids, I put them outside for their potty breaks letting them outside from our basement. My two could see them from the upstairs patio door. If my two boys needed to go out I let them out from the upstairs and the fosters would be in the basement. Each pair could see each other from a distance like this for a few days before I introduced them face to face. I waited a full three days before they met. This way they were able to sense the others from smell, sight and sound before I put them in the same room. It worked great.

[Brody'sMom]

My husband and I provide transportation for rescued Cairns going to their forever homes. Even that is hard, and we sometimes only have them for just over and hour. This past weekend, we did an owner surrender and kept the Cairn overnight before driving her one leg in a multi leg trip to her foster home. The Cairn was so sweet, we did not want to give her up. That was only after 12 hours! I think giving up a foster would be hard. However, I think it would be a very rewarding experience.

[jetersmom]

It is REALLY hard.