Tag: #adopt

The Hardest Part of Fostering

Today was Emory’s adoption day. Without question the hardest part of fostering is letting go. Cleaning up a messy crate, training, walking, feeding, it’s all easy compared to letting go.

So many people tell me they would love to foster, but it’s too hard. Letting go is hard, but I know I made a difference in this dog’s life. I gave her a chance to decompress after her transport from the South. I gave her the chance to be part of a home, to learn our routines, to ride in the car, to visit stores, to walk on a leash.

This girl was so sweet. The shyness she showed at first, quickly dissipated as she got used to the sites and smells of my home and yard. It’s hard to believe that when I brought her home two weeks ago, she was so scared she wouldn’t walk into my house. We spent half an hour together walking around the outside yard, smelling everything spooking at the wind, chewing up a stick, and then finally she was ready to check out the inside.

Why do I foster? I foster for so many reasons. Selfishly, I love dogs and I love the experience of working with them on such a close basis by fostering. I love the chance to get to know their different personalities. I also love animals in general, and I know that dog overpopulation is a continuing problem. I know that when I foster an animal, it helps make room for another one. I know that fostering helps the dog adjust to home life and makes it more adoptable.

I also volunteer at the shelter and love seeing all the new dogs and puppies that come through there. Friday I got to take care of a batch of puppies for a couple of hours. They ran and played in the mud. I made sure they didn’t escape the yard or get too rough with each other. I also gave the littlest one warm snuggles when she got cold.

 

I also sat with a shy little guy who wasn’t eating well. I patted him and encouraged him to eat his dinner. I walked him into the yard to sniff the air. I snuggled him up in his blankets and just sat with him while he ate.

Spending time with these dogs gives me a sense of peace. I do it for me as much as I do it for them.

The other night I met a woman who told me she used to have a dog, but lost him to old age several years ago, and didn’t get another. I asked her if she missed having a dog and she said she did, but that she couldn’t go through all the “end of life stuff” again. It seemed so sad to me that this person was missing out on the joy that having a dog can bring because dogs life spans are so much shorter than ours.

I can’t understand why she focussed on the last couple of months and how hard it was, rather than focussing on the joy the dog clearly brought her for so many years. She said she had the dog for almost thirteen years!

Every single day I miss Cali. Something will inevitably remind me of her, and I get sad, but I try to replace that sadness with a happy memory, maybe my daughter dressing her in cute clothes or cuddling her up in soft blankets. Maybe it is memories of Cali as a puppy chewing on our Yellow Lab, Cheese’s ears. I guess some people just chose to focus on the negative.

I’m going to focus on the positive. With fosters that means enjoying the time I have with them, being thankful to be a positive stop in their lives, and enjoying the joy of their new people when they get adopted.

And yes, I’m going to get another dog one day. Yes, it is a bit of a hassle to make arrangements for pet care when I travel, but it’s worth it. I miss the companionship. I miss the walks, and I definitely miss the cuddles. I’m not in a rush. I know my next best friend will find me when the time is right, and I’m keeping my eyes open so I don’t miss him or her!

Munk the Cat

Munk-Y Cat

I am a big believer in Adopt Don’t Shop, but here’s a little twist… the pet you think you want, may not necessarily be the right pet for you. My advice? Go looking for a new friend with an open mind. We no longer have Munk the cat, unfortunately he passed away a few years ago, but I will never forget his story.

Our whole family went to the local humane society to adopt a new kitten. We went into the cat room and played with the loose cat that was wandering around, and we looked for kittens. Unfortunately, no kittens were available for adoption that day. We continued to pat the adult cat that was loose in the room while we looked at the other adult cats that were there. Sadly, none of them caught our eye.

We hung out in a corner of the room for a minute to talk, should we wait until next weekend and check back? Should we try other shelters? As we talked, we all took turns patting the loose cat. The kids were disappointed, but it seemed the right kitten wasn’t there for us that day, so we headed for the door.

Slowly, we headed for the parking lot, then I stopped. My family turned to look at me. “Everything OK,” my husband asked. “Why don’t we think about adopting that cat that was loose?” was my reply. We all patted him, he followed us around the room. If we wanted a friendly, out-going cat, that guy was awesome.

We turned and went back in. The family went to see the cat again, and I went to the desk for an application. Sadly, another family was already at the desk filling out an application for Gunther, the cat we decided we wanted. The woman at the desk told me they always pick the best family for each animal and not the first family and she encouraged me to fill out the application anyway. As I stood there writing away, I heard the other people fighting about the cat. It was a Grandma, a Mom, and a boy. Grandma wanted to adopt a pet for the boy. The boy wanted a dog, the Mom said he could have a cat. Boy started screaming and yelling that he didn’t want a “Stupid” cat.

I finished the application, and the woman at the desk asked to talk to our whole family in the other room. We went with her and she went over our application with us. She told us that she thought we were a much better match for the cat than the other family, and she put him in a carrier for us.

Part of me felt bad for taking the cat from that other family, but I just knew this cat was going to be a perfect fit in our home, and he was. Maybe our taking him gave the other family a chance to figure out what kind of pet they really wanted.

Munk ended up being a super special cat. He loved everyone in the family. He would go sleep on my son’s bed at night, and then when my husband went to bed, Munk would move and come sleep on his feet. Munk taught us that adopting an adult cat could be even more awesome than adopting a kitten. We didn’t have to hope the kitten would grow up and be a good fit with our family. We had a ready-to-go cat that was already perfect.