Fosters needed

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Did you know that if 1.7 million households fostered just one dog per year we would eliminate unnecessary euthanization in shelters? Fostering truly does save lives!

Essentially you provide a loving home, and we provide the rest. For a more detailed explanation of how everything works take a look below.

The Basics

• You must be 21 years or older
• You must have a stable residence, where everyone living there is in agreement to have a dog. This includes written landlord approval.
• You must allow Barks of Love to pair you with a dog in need. They will take into consideration the dog you request.
• You must be able to transport your foster dog to scheduled medical appointments, adoption events, or training classes. If you can't, no worries! We have volunteers that can help.

Here’s what’s expected of our foster parents:

• They provide nutritious food (provided by Barks of Love), plentiful water, adequate shelter, and control of external parasites (fleas and ticks)also provided by Barks of Love. They provide the dog with exercise, basic obedience training and housetraining. Proper training greatly increases a dog’s chance of being adopted and training support is available from a Barks of Love trainer when needed.
• They are responsible for the safety of each foster dog that comes into their care, and for the safety of other dogs and people the dog comes into contact with. They never let their foster dogs be a nuisance to other people or other animals.
• They always keep a collar with the Barks of Love ID tag on the dog at all times. This is its link back to us. If the tag is lost they immediately contact us for a new one. They keep foster dogs on their leash when they’re outside of a house or securely fenced yard. Our dogs are never allowed to run or play off-leash in an open public area. NO DOG PARKS ALLOWED
• They keep any fostered dog safely confined in a fenced yard, kennel run, or inside a house or garage when the dog is not with them or a family member. Crate training is highly encouraged.
• At no time are foster dogs placed outside on a tie-out (in a yard, in front of a café, store etc.)
• Our fosters immediately notify us in the event of a missing, injured, or sick dog.

How We Support Our Fosters:

We know it is imperative that you feel our support through the fostering process. We look forward to seeing you at adoption events and keep in constant communication to make sure you are getting what you need. You will work directly with a BOL Staff Member who is your one-on-one contact to answer any and all questions and to help you every step along the way. We want to make sure our dogs and our fosters are happy, healthy, and well taken care of. We also love to get updates of our foster pups enjoying their new life with a foster home!

Here’s what Rocket Dog covers:

• Barks of Love provides a collar, ID tag, leash and pays for all required medical procedures.
• Barks of Love offers donated items for the the dogs, like food, treats, toys, beds, etc. Since we’re a non-profit, we also appreciate tax-deductible donations toward caring for foster dogs. If a foster parent needs something for their dog, they should contact us to let us know.
• We can lend crates to foster homes, but of course they must be returned to Barks of Love when a foster dog is adopted.

Vet visits:

• All basic medical expenses for each foster dog are covered by Barks of Love. (You’d just need approval from us for some of them, and the care needs to be from one of our designated veterinarians. Barks of Love's Medical Coordinator will coordinate and confirm all vet appointments and work with you on all Barks of Love foster dogs need to be spayed/neutered, micro-chipped, and vaccinated. If a foster parent’s dog is unfixed they need to contact the Barks of Love medical l coordinator to schedule an appointment with with one of our vets. If you can’t get the dog there on your own we can probably help, you’ll just need to work with us to make it happen.

Promoting the dogs:

• Our fosters assist in getting a photo and bio of each of their foster dogs onto our website. (You can e-mail them to ashley@barksoflove.org, but if you can’t get good photos you just need to ask your RDR representative for help.
• We also need video content for our Instagram and Facebook to show off how adorable your foster dog is! The more the better! The more content we have, the quicker the dog gets adopted.
• Our fosters can also advertise their foster dogs on social media, in local shops, on other websites, with friends, and anywhere else dogs can be advertised for adoption.
• We know it’s fun, but Barks of Love Dogs are named by our senior volunteers to avoid duplicates and confusion between animals for medical records purposes.

Dog Adoptions:

• We welcome our foster parents input on potential adopters, but they all still have to be screened, interviewed and approved by an authorized Barks of Love representative. Foster input is a part of the process, but the final decision on where to place a dog is made by us.
• Inquiries about adopting the foster dog should be directed to us. We’ll arrange an official meet and greet where one of our representatives can be present for the visit. Also, we ask that fostered dogs be made available to meet prospective adopters that we may locate.
• Fosters sometimes decide to adopt their foster dog. However, they must go through the same adoption process as anyone else, including paying the requested donation which we use to help cover the costs of helping and saving dogs.
• If you need to return your foster dog to us for any reason, we’ll need enough warning to find it a new home. This may take a week or more depending on the dog and the number of other dogs in foster care.
• We retain the right to remove a foster dog from foster care at any time.
• Of course our fosters can’t give their dogs to anyone until an adoption has been approved and an Adoption Agreement form is signed off by an Barks of Love representative.

Foster Dogs and Children:

• Since we don’t know the total history of the dogs we rescue, our dogs should never, under any circumstances be left unattended with children, and parents should be cautious and observant when children are eating with the dog in the room.
• If there’s a child under 3 in the house the dog needs to be in its crate or a separate room while it’s eating or sleeping to limit the risk of accidents
• We ask that children under the age of 13 don’t walk our dogs unless an adult is with them.
• Also, keep in mind that a child in the house with a dog is at risk of being accidentally knocked over, scratched or bitten etc.
• If your foster dog gives you any concerns or you feel uncomfortable with the situation between the dog and a child let us know. We’ll either take the dog out of your home immediately or have a trainer come and meet with you, depending on how severe the situation is and what you’d like us to do.

Foster Dogs and Other Animals:

• Foster dogs and cats should be introduced to each other slowly and cautiously over a period of a few weeks while the dog is kept on a leash.
• Even if your foster dog has been housed with other animals before no one can guarantee its behavior with your other pets will be the same.
• Just as with children, don’t leave your foster dog in the same room as other animals unattended.
• Do not feed your foster dog in the same room as other pets, and don’t leave toys and treats laying around the house.
• If you need help, don’t hesitate to contact us. We can put you in touch with a senior volunteer or behaviorist to assist you with introducing your animals.