Fostering Information

What is fostering?

A foster home is a temporary home for a newly retired greyhound from the track and acclimating it to your home while awaiting adoption.  Most of our homes will have their foster hound from weeks to months.  It just depends on how long it takes for your new foster to find a family.  Foster homes are very important to Allies for Greyhounds.  While we have an adoption kennel, a foster home will create more room in our kennel for more newly retired hounds and help them transition from being an athlete to a family pet.

Why foster?

Here at AFG, we have a somewhat unique method of adoptions, which means that our fostering is a little different, too. Our adoptions consist of a matchmaking-like process- we ask the adopter for the characteristics of the dog they’re looking for and we bring 3 dogs that fit those qualities to an adoption, with one being chosen at the end of the adoption visit. The goal of fostering is to get the dogs ready for their forever homes, which includes telling AFG and future adopters about their personalities, quirks, and likes, and getting them integrated into a home setting. This includes all the fun things (seeing a tv for the first time! seeing them play with new friends!) and all of the more challenging ones (getting them used to a potty routine and helping them navigate new situations with cats and other dogs). Since we have so much focus on finding a good fit, we do not do foster with intent. Foster with intent does not work well with our adoption process and is more difficult on everyone in the situation, from the adopters who are trying to find a perfect dog fit for their home to the volunteers trying to schedule adoptions and even to the dogs trying to adjust to new situations and learn rules.

If you’re looking to adopt, we’re very confident in our process of fitting dogs to homes so we recommend that you just set up an adoption. We can help find great dogs that will be good fits for your home, bringing three potentials to ensure that you have the best possibility of finding your forever friend. If you are interested in opening your home to dogs to help them get ready for their forever homes, we love that and are happy to provide the training and support necessary for both you and your new foster dogs!

Do I get to pick my foster?

AFG will select your greyhound fosters, trying to fit those who need to be in foster the most with the best fit for the homes available.   All greyhounds that come to AFG are cat tested before foster placement.  If your home has cats, a cat safe greyhound would go into your home. Cat testing involves meeting a cat and looking at behaviors- they will still need training on how to appropriately deal with cats in a home. While homes that do not have a cat, a greyhound that is not cafe should be selected.  AFG does not move greyhounds that are already in a foster home to another foster home unless there is a specific issue or the greyhound is not a good fit in the current foster home. The cat safe or not cat safe information can be found on our website next to the individual greyhound information as well as other basics about them. The available hounds that have “I’m now in foster care” are not available to new foster homes.  In each dog description it will also be listed if they are cat safe or not and will have an icon listed.  If you do not have cats, it will be suggested that you foster a dog that does not get along with cats. They deserve families too and often take a little longer for forever homes for!

What are my responsibilities as a foster parent?

Fostering does have many responsibilities.   Here is a basic run down:

• Taking your foster dog to monthly Meet and Greets which are usually on Saturdays from 11am to 3pm:  We suggest getting them out to Meet and Greets as often as you can to be seen by potential adopters. That is a very good way for him/her to find a family of their own. We strongly suggest at least 2 per month.
• Going to adoption visits: Your foster will typically have around 1 adoption visit per month, although that number can vary depending on how many dogs are currently available, how many adoptions there are in the month, and even just how popular your dog is at the moment! The adoptions are typically scheduled on weekends, with an email sent out the week before to double-check that you think your foster could be a good fit there and if you can make it. If you can’t make it, you can arrange alternative options for getting the dog there. This is a great time to talk about the wonderful qualities (and annoying ones!) of your foster to see if they’re a good fit for the home. Sometimes your foster will be adopted on the first visit, other times it may take a dozen! If you haven’t adopted from us before, please see the adoption process page for more information on what goes on during an adoption visit.
• Introducing your foster to the home environment and appropriate behaviors:   Introducing your foster hound to other family members such as cats, dogs, and children. Greyhounds have never seen stairs in a home, TVs, washers, dryers, vacuums or any household items before and will need to be introduced and slowly in some cases.   Greyhounds are quick learners, so it doesn’t take much to get them acclimated to a home.  If you should run into issues with your foster hound, there is many other fosters that can offer you advice.  Here are few other things that you will be teaching your foster hound:  potty training/house training, walking nicely on a leash, acceptable behavior inside and outside the home and proper behavior with other pets.
• Filling out the AFG Foster Profile form:   The profile link will be sent this via email and should be filled out after about 1-2 weeks. The profile should include the basics about the hound and should also include a small biography of the hound that will be displayed on the website.
• Pictures:  AFG highly encourages pictures.  Pictures in the home, outside, in the car, at meet and greets and even sleeping!  They do help in getting your foster adopted.
• Commitment:  Fostering a greyhound does take an emotional commitment.  Your new foster hound will require understanding and patience as they transition from a kennel environment to that of a home environment.  The time your foster hound is in your home will vary.  Sometimes it is weeks and sometimes it is months.  There is just no guarantee of the length of time they will be in your home,  we ask that a foster home stay committed to their foster hound until adoption.

What does AFG provide foster families?

AFG will provide you with a collar, leash, muzzle, crate, and a very large support group should you have any questions or problems with your foster. We will also take care of vet bills as long as we are notified PRIOR to the greyhound being seen by the vet and everything is approved. The only exception to this policy would be emergencies. The foster greyhound will already have been spayed/neutered, up to date on vaccinations, tested for heartworms and treated for parasites, so it is a very rare occasion that the foster greyhound will need to see a vet once he/she is in your home.  Foster homes will provide the food for their hound.

What happens when it’s time to give my foster to his/her family?

When an application to adopt is received and they are interested in your foster hound, an AFG representative will contact you with the specifics.   You are encouraged to come along on the home visit and interact the potential adopters about your foster. If you are unable to attend, arrangements can be made accordingly.  This can be an emotional experience for most foster homes.  We need to remain professional, calm, and collected at all times. There will always be another foster greyhound waiting for your love and care!

What if I want to adopt my foster?

There have been many cases where the foster homes fall head over heels for their foster hounds and decide to adopt.  AFG foster homes have the first right of refusal.  Meaning, you have the first opportunity to adopt your foster hound before anyone else.  While we are happy a hound finds their home, we do encourage you to foster a couple of dogs before you keep one if you can.  If you decide your foster is staying permanently, we ask you notify us right away and complete the adoption as soon as possible. We don’t want to confuse potential adopters by having dogs up on our website that aren’t actually available.

If fostering is not a possibility, please consider making a monetary donation that will help kennel operating costs, food, meds and transportation.  Even a simple donation of your time is more valuable than you know.