How to Welcome a Foster Dog
So, you’ve just taken in a foster dog. What do I do next? Read on, for everything you need to know.
In This Article:
What Is Dog Fostering? How to Apply to Be a Foster How to Prepare for a Foster Dog Caring for a Foster Dog Make Each Introduction Positive and Gradual So, Should You Foster a Dog?
Our local shelter put out a call for foster homes. Four hours after thinking I’d like to help out, I was driving home with an adorable two-year-old mixed-breed dog. Now what do I do?
Fostering a dog is a small but significant way to help local shelters. Especially now, when shelters nationwide are becoming overwhelmed as ICE raids force families to leave pets behind, fostering is a vital service. Fostering helps dogs leave the stress of a noisy shelter behind as they enter a calm, loving home. It helps shelters save resources and reduce overcrowding. It’s a valuable way to determine what a dog may need in a permanent home. With a little preparation, some patience, and consistency, fostering ensures you’ll increase a dog’s chance of adoption.
Trick question: All dogs are perfect! But find out which type is the best fit for you.
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What is dog fostering?
Fostering gives temporary homes to dogs waiting for permanent adoption and can last anywhere from a few days to several months. Veronika Karubian — a foster dog parent who works with vets, trainers, and rescue groups as the founder and CEO of BioPupopens in new tab — has seen firsthand how fostering helps dogs heal, adjust, and find lasting homes. “Fostering provides dogs with a safer, friendlier environment,” Karubian, who’s also a certified canine nutritionist, says.
Elam Miller, a canine behavioral consultant and foster dog parent, views fostering as an opportunity to provide peace and safety for a dog who’s been living in survival mode. “You show them what a good life is and what can be expected in the future,” says Miller, who owns The Dog Kennel Collectionopens in new tab and builds facilities for breeders, boarding facilities, and rescue organizations.
Dr. Liza Cahn, lead veterinarian at Embrace Pet Insuranceopens in new tab, says fostering is especially important for hard-to-place dogs. “It may involve caring for senior pets, very young puppies, pregnant mothers, dogs with complex medical conditions or special needs, or timid animals who may not do well in a shelter environment,” she says.
Benefits of fostering a dog
Fostering a dog has many benefits for the foster parent, the foster dog, and the wider community. For Miller, the best part of fostering is tracking small, incremental changes in a dog. He’s seen a dog go from being unable to eat when a person is around to wagging their tail when they hear familiar footsteps.
Cahn agrees with that heartwarming observation, saying that a dog’s chances of living a better life increase each day as they adjust to home life. “Individualized attention allows foster dogs to learn positive behaviors, good manners, and socialization skills, which significantly increase their overall well-being and odds of being adopted,” she says.
Dr. Aimee Warner, the resident veterinarian at Waggelopens in new tab, says foster-dog parents universally agree that fostering is a rewarding experience. “It allows one to make a difference in a dog’s life without a lifelong commitment,” she says.
Cahn says foster parents thrive on the gratification of helping animals in need. Fostering provides all the companionship and unconditional love of pet parenting, she says, which is known to reduce stress and improve mental and physical health. Thinking more broadly, you may be saving more than one life. “Fostering frees up space so shelters can help more animals in need and can have a significant impact on reducing overcrowding and euthanasia,” Cahn says.
Responsibilities involved in dog fostering
Foster dog parents are responsible for providing stable, supportive home environments that prepare dogs for their future families. “Foster parents are responsible for managing all aspects of daily care, which includes providing food, water, exercise, mental stimulation, transportation to veterinary appointments or adoption events, playtime, grooming, and administering medications, if needed,” Cahn says. “Working on socialization, house training, leash skills, and basic manners can also help make a foster dog more appealing to potential adopters.”
Foster dog parents play a key role in a dog’s adoption by sharing their observations about the dog’s needs and personality to help the shelter find them a perfect forever home.
How to apply to be a foster
Shelters and rescues ask prospective foster parents to complete an application and interview. Next, they visit your home to verify your address and assess if the environment is conducive to fostering.
“They need to make sure you’re a match for the dog and its needs,” Warner says. “If you’re approved, they’ll give you the necessary support and guidance, including covering the vet costs throughout the fostering period.”
You’ll be vetted, too. Rescues take the responsibility of fostering seriously and may ask for references and a background check. Some require orientation and training sessions. Karubian, who’s fostered a number of dogs, says the process becomes easier once you know what to expect, and the shelter knows you’re reliable. Her Labrador, Winston, is a big help. “Having him means I already have the space, resources, and experience to care for a new dog. He’s extremely friendly toward other dogs. He plays with them, helps them adjust, and helps them build confidence,” Karubian says.
How to prepare for a foster dog
The first time you foster a dog, the learning curve may seem steep, but over time, the process becomes automatic. The most important things to consider are supplies and food, ideally the same food your foster dog had at the shelter to avoid stomach upset, Cahn says. Having a dedicated safe space, adequate supplies, and the right mindset for creating calm, peaceful connections will set you up for success.
Get some supplies
It’s easier to take care of your new foster dog if you have some basic supplies. I recommend a four-to six-foot leash, a flat collar, food and water bowls, dog food, a Kong (or similar hollow toy that can be stuffed), a few toys of different types (including chew toys), poop bags, a dog bed (or enough blankets to serve as a bed), and a crate or pen.
Warner suggests cleaning supplies — because accidents happen, and you want to be prepared. “It’s a must that you have enough supplies to keep the space clean,” she says.
Basic house plan and safe space
Determine how to use the layout of your home most effectively. Choose a private place for the foster dog’s bed, toys, food bowls, and water bowls so they can enjoy those things without being surprised. Dogs need to learn where to relieve themselves and where to sleep, as soon as possible. Showing them the “bathroom” and the “bedroom” will help reduce their anxiety.
Miller advises reducing clutter. “I recommend stripping everything down to real essentials — like just one bed, one feeding spot,” he says. “Foster dogs don’t need much variety. They need to know life around them is stable and won’t change back to full-stress survival mode.”
This forethought can spare you and your pup potential harm and headaches. Warner advises keeping wires organized and storing hazardous or valuable items.
Caring for a foster dog
Your job is to create a sanctuary for your foster dog with a predictable routine to help them feel safe. “Focus on getting to know them with kind interactions, positive reinforcement, and gentle physical contact,” Cahn says.
Your role includes being a foster dog advocate and shelter liaison. “Keep notes on your foster dog’s personality, quirks, and likes and dislikes,” Cahn says. “Foster parents are key observers of health and behavior, and any concerns should be communicated to the shelter. If you feel that your foster dog is having trouble settling in, let the shelter vet know.”
Dogs generally read tone better than words, Miller says. “Keep your voice even, to help them believe everything is predictable. With every meal and walk, you repeat the same message — ‘Hey, this place is steady, no surprise.’ A dog will learn the most desired peace when the world around is finally ‘boring’ (aka predictable).”
Make each introduction positive and gradual
Your foster dog jumps out of the car and immediately encounters your resident dog. A fight ensues that traumatizes your foster dog. Prevent this scenario by keeping other animals and people away from your foster dog until they’re settled enough for introductions.
Focus on making each new experience pleasant and calm. For introductions, that means having your foster dog meet every person in your household, especially children, one at a time, calmly, with no pressure and perhaps some treats or toys if they’re receptive. They should also meet other dogs, cats, and any other species in your household one at a time, with a break between introductions.
Get to know your dog
This process cannot be rushed. In order to start your friendship, you need to spend time with your dog, engaging with them, and learning about their likes and dislikes. Figure out which toys (if any) they enjoy and how they like to play, whether that’s fetch, chase, or tug. Engage in positive training with no expectations. Your foster dog may know a lot, or they may not even know their name or how to sit on cue. Perhaps they’re too overwhelmed to learn much right now. Keep each training session relaxed and low-key. Consider this a fun way to interact with them rather than a way for them to learn any particular skills. The point is for them to associate you with good things, such as treats and toys and love and attention, not for them to excel at obedience.
Stay home and care for them
At first, avoid visits to the veterinarian and groomer, if possible. At the very least, your foster dog has experienced many intense changes in a short period of time. Don’t compound that with additional new and potentially unpleasant experiences. Try to stay at home with your dog. If you have to go out, don’t take them with you on errands. Your foster dog has enough to adjust to after landing in an unfamiliar household. Obviously, if there’s an imminent medical need or your dog’s coat is so matted that it affects their quality of life (restricting their movements or making them uncomfortable), or some other serious issue exists, you may need to take them for help. Otherwise, I recommend waiting a few weeks before visiting any pet professionals.
Be patient
The most important three words to remember when you’re caring for a new foster dog are patience, patience, and patience. Do your best to be patient with them and with yourself. You both deserve that grace. Many people (including me) are making the world a better place one foster dog at a time.
So, should you foster a dog?
Fostering is best for people who are OK with goodbyes, Miller says. If you’re the type of person to foster a dog, you’re also likely the type to become attached to that dog. Recognizing that will ease the grief of saying goodbye. “Yes, you teach a dog about a good life, but then you let another family continue that story,” Miller says. “This work leaves you proud, but also a bit empty. Foster parents should be emotionally OK with being a chapter.”
He says anyone who expects a grateful rescue shouldn’t become a foster dog parent. Many foster dogs won’t realize you saved them and won’t trust you, at least not at first. “You’re new, and they remember that new things have hurt them before,” Miller says. “It might take many weeks before a tail lifts or the dog dares to sleep around you without nervously watching the door.”
Warner says fostering also works for people who love dogs but can’t commit to full-time pet parenting and want to help their local shelter.
Cahn says the decision to foster hinges on your lifestyle and whether or not you have the time, desire, and means. Resident pets or young children can make fostering more difficult. Some foster pets may also come with significant behavioral issues (such as severe anxiety, a lack of house training, or reactivity), which require patience and dedication. “Lastly, while the goal of fostering is eventually to say goodbye, it’s natural to form a very strong bond, and giving that dog up to their new family can be genuinely heartbreaking,” Cahn says.
Bottom line
Fostering a dog is one of the most meaningful ways you can support your local shelter or rescue. When you open your home to a foster dog, you’re giving them a temporary, loving space to decompress, feel safe, and learn what family life can be like. The first few days may be a little chaotic — new routines, new personalities, new questions — but with patience, structure, and calm, most dogs settle in quickly.
As a foster parent, your role is simple, but important: Provide food, basic supplies, a predictable routine, and plenty of reassurance. Take time to understand your foster dog’s personality. Keep introductions slow and positive. Stay in touch with your shelter or foster coordinator about any concerns. Remember, you’re not expected to fix everything — you’re giving this dog a chance to grow, recover, and shine outside the stress of a shelter.
Fostering won’t always be easy, and saying goodbye can be hard — but this is also a deeply rewarding experience. You’re helping prepare a dog for their forever home, and in many cases, you’re also helping shelters save more animals in need.
