For Immediate Release

Contact: b j Altschul, APR

240.773.5967
bja@mchumane.org
Main Shelter Information: 240.773.5960

Rockville, Maryland - December 9, 2009 – While recent media attention has focused on temporary fostering of shelter animals over the holidays, the Montgomery County Humane Society instead recommends a longer term foster commitment designed to make adoption into permanent homes easier.

Fostering animals for MCHS provides a double benefit: the animals get added TLC in a private home, while the burden on the shelter is eased to allow caring for more animals and speeding up the adoption process.

MCHS’s primary goal is to find permanent loving homes for shelter animals with adopters who understand how to be responsible pet parents. The adopter must be ready to make a long-term commitment to the pet for the animal’s lifetime and not return the pet if things don’t go as expected.

A foster who is genuinely committed to the process agrees to participate over at least a six-month period. If you’re interested in becoming a foster for MCHS’s “Rescue Without Walls,” keep these tips in mind:

• Foster policies vary from shelter to shelter, just as adoption policies do. What’s best for shelter animals going into foster homes is the foster’s commitment to the process.

• MCHS asks fosters to sign on for six months – or longer, if you find you really take to this type of volunteering. A typical foster experience might be only a few weeks at a time for any given animal, with a breather in between each animal fostered.

• With MCHS guidance, you choose the type of animal you would like to foster. MCHS pays for basic shots and the foster animal’s spay/neuter.

• You provide a loving home on a short-term basis, along with socialization, food, litter and other supplies. The home environment you offer is much more likely to resemble life with a new permanent adopter than the shelter, making it possible for the animal to adjust to a new permanent home that much faster.

• You help find a forever home for the foster animal by attending MCHS adoption events, writing profile information and submitting photos for the MCHS website.

Foster homes are needed for all types of animals, from dogs and cats to rabbits, guinea pigs, other small mammals, birds and reptiles. To give an animal a second chance in life by fostering, visit www.mchumane.org/fosterprogram, call 240.793.4201 or email fostermau@mchumane.org.

Foster Volunteer Requirements/Commitments

In order to be approved as a foster parent, you must meet the following requirements:

• Approval of landlord if you are renting
• Provide own transportation for veterinary appointments or to the shelter
• Have a flexible schedule
• Commit to at least six months to the program
• Complete a Foster Care Application and sign a foster care agreement
• Agree to a home visit/training interview by foster staff
• Ability to lift, push, carry 15-20 pounds
• Offer physical separation from your own animals as needed

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About the Montgomery County Humane Society:

The Montgomery County Humane Society in Rockville, MD, is a nonprofit animal welfare organization that has provided animal sheltering services for Montgomery County since 1958. MCHS receives funds to operate the Montgomery County Animal Shelter under a grant from the Montgomery County Government and from private donations. As the only full-service animal shelter in the county, MCHS handles more than 9,000 animals annually, and, as an open admission shelter, never turns an animal away.