Thinking about Fostering?

Thank you so much for thinking about fostering for Axarquia Animal Rescue (AAR).

Fostering really does save lives.

We only have a very small emergency place of safety for dogs and the use of a small private kennels. We therefore rely heavily on Foster carers to take our dogs into their homes and give us the time we need to find their forever homes.

AAR will pay all veterinary expenses for fostered dogs and we can supply any equipment that is needed. Many of our fosterers supply their own food, but we will happily supply this too. We can also contribute towards your fuel costs for any trips you need to make on our behalf.

There are now many different options if you want to foster for AAR. You can foster full time with all our usual AAR support until your foster dog is adopted AND you can now join us as a FOSTER BUDDY!

Please look through the Gallery and contact us if you would like to have a chat about any of our dogs.

Why Foster For AAR?

Fostering a dog is one of the most rewarding experiences you can have (other than adopting of course!). By fostering you:

• enable AAR to take that dog on our books and do our very best to find it a forever home
• free up a kennel space so that we can take on another dog in desperate need
• help us learn more about the dog so that we can find them the best possible forever home
• socialise the dog in your home environment and give them the very best chances of being adopted

What is a Foster Home?

For a young puppy a foster home is a very important place. It’s the place where he will learn love, trust and will feel safe and secure, the main things he needs to grow into a great companion for his future forever family. And you, the foster family, will have a wonderful experience watching him grow, learn and develop as well as enjoying his company.

For an adult abandoned dog, a foster home will be the place where he will begin to feel loved again and to trust humans again.

You will have the support of the AAR Team, a dedicated caseworker for 'your' dog who will be in constant communication with you, and we will provide you all the necessary equipment and food for the dog’s care.

Please, if you feel you can share your life with a foster dog and give him love and a temporary home, just let us know.

Take your pick from the many dogs we have:

• Puppies: male/female hand-rear (we only home these in 2's) or older big/small sizes, single placement or more
• Dogs: male/female, large/small, single placement or more

If you would like to help please contact us telling us a little about yourself, your family, your home, your experience with dogs, and your preferences, and we will make an appointment to visit you.

What Type Of Dog Is Best For Me To Foster?

AAR will work with you to identify the best match. We will get to know you and your lifestyle and preferences and then match you up with the right foster dog for you. Fostering is totally flexible and we will work with you to fit it around your existing commitments and lifestyle.

How Does It Work In Practice?

We always do a home visit for all new foster carers. All our dogs are precious and it is vital to us that we get to know you a little better. We look at practical issues during the home visit – for example if you have low fencing then a Podenco may not be the right dog for you. If you have two males then a female may be a better fit. We will also put you in contact with other foster carers who are more than happy to share their experiences with you.

Once the home visit is successfully completed we will take all the information and discuss the best fit foster dog for you. We will of course take on board your time constraints and preferences. We then issue you a foster contract for that particular dog.

Once your foster dog is at home with you then their AAR Caseworker will be your main point of contact. Our Caseworkers are responsible for all aspects of the dog, from making sure you have any equipment you need, such as leads, harnesses or puppy crates; to arranging the dogs vaccination schedules, advertising them for adoption and arranging their travel to their new forever homes. Your Caseworker will also be able to give you advice and guidance on anything you need such as how to feed a tiny puppy through to the best ways to motivate and stimulate an older dog.

Please look through the Gallery and contact us if you would like to have a chat about any of our dogs.

What is a FOSTER BUDDY

• Are you keen to foster but have regular commitments that make it difficult?
• Do you need to leave your weekdays or weekends free?
• Are you keen to foster but nervous about the full time commitment?
• Would a week or 2 on and a week or 2 off suit your work pattern?
• Would it help to have ‘doggie day care' for your foster from time to time to give you a break?
• Would you just like to offer ‘holiday’ cover for our current fosterers?

Have you thought about joining our FOSTER BUDDY scheme?

Under this scheme you’ll foster for AAR with all our usual support, but we’ll find you a foster buddy who can help with ‘doggy day care’ from time to time or take your foster on a more regular basis – maybe a week on, week off would suit you? or maybe you would just like to foster at weekends? Maybe you and a friend or neighbour would like to buddy up sharing the foster role between you?

This scheme will give you much greater flexibility to fit in with your day to day life. We build the foster arrangement around you and the needs of your foster dog.

How Can I Bear To Let Them Go?

This is the question we most often get asked. To be a good foster carer you need to give that dog your time, love and care, and a natural and positive consequence of that is that saying goodbye is hard.

Remember it is easier to say goodbye to a dog who is starting the rest of their lives with their wonderful forever family. In many cases if you had not fostered that dog then we would not have been able to help them. You really are saving a life.

We also have a Foster Co-Ordinator who is on hand for any questions and queries that you may have.

From time to time foster carers find that they just can’t part with their foster dog (and that is OK!) so long as you tell us as soon as you are considering adopting.

Next Steps?

We hope you have found this information on fostering useful and we will be keeping our fingers and toes crossed that you decide to come and join our fostering team.

Thank you, and remember:

Fostering Saves Lives.