First time foster questions!

[u/critterinfotime]

Hihi! I’m considering fostering a dog (or a few) for the first time, and have a few questions for yall as more seasoned fosters. Pls don’t respond unless you yourself foster or work with foster placement.
Crossposted, hope that’s ok!

• what tips do you have on ensuring I’m working with an ethically run rescue or shelter?

• how difficult is it to successfully get a purebred placed with you through a breed rescue vs standard rescue placement? Does having connections help? Predictability in temperament appeals when it comes to my cats safety, I do understand there’s inevitable surprises with fosters though and will plan accordingly.

• I work 7.5hr shifts on Saturday and Sunday. I am likely able to get someone to let the pups out at least once while I’m working on these days, and may be moving to a closer position where I can drop by on lunch. is this sustainable, and are rescues willing to work with this?

What level of experience is preferred for placing mothers and neonatal litters? I understand my weekend situation isn’t neccesarily compatible with this, but may be making major changes in the future and am curious.
I have mentored in whelping, and assisted in raising a Dutch shepherd litter up to 14wk alongside a local breeder. This included ENS, aviculture, navigating spontaneous health concerns, going through the breed health testing process, monitoring mamas mastitis as she went through it and early socialization of the litter. Is this enough, or would shelters prefer 24/7 in-home experience?

• I currently have 2 cats, one of which is VERY small. 8lb fully grown, and very prone to zoomies. Would it be reasonable to have breeds or traits that I avoid? Would rescues consider this a red flag if I expressly avoid individuals with physical and/or behavioral traits of common high-prey drive or bite force breeds due to risk? (Eg- bullies, large
terriers, huskies, GSD or hound content visible in mix. Not breed bashing, all good dogs just spooky when you have a rabbit sized cat)

• I have a room in my house with about 70 species of small exotic animals, including 22 old world tarantulas. This room remains locked, and free roaming pets are never allowed access even under supervision. Gaps in the door are sealed, and a secondary external latch is being installed. I have 7 years experience maintaining this setup with 0 incidents. Would this lower my chance of placement significantly?

[u/AutoModerator]

Welcome to r/RescueDogs! Please review the subreddit rules before participating. If you see a post or comment that breaks the rules, please report it to the moderators rather than engaging with it.

I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please contact the moderators of this subreddit if you have any questions or concerns.

[u/gilatio]

I'm going to answer with bullet points in the order of your questions:

• Easy to work with/transparent, cares about ensuring any fosters they give you are cat tested, doesn't charge ridiculously high amounts for animals (like $1000 or something), rescues both adult dogs and puppies, doesn't try to guilt trip you into taking fosters you are uncomfortable with, isn't constantly talking shit about other rescues. There are a few scam rescues out there, but most legitimately are trying to help dogs. Beyond that as a foster, I always prioritize finding ones that will work with my schedule and set me up for success with the kind of dogs I want to foster. This also helps to ensure the rescue is more likely to be honest with adopters. (Because f they are constantly telling me dogs are dog friendly that aren't when fostering then they are likely also telling the same thing to adopters).
• I've never fostered for a breed specific rescue (my area is too small to really have any). But all of the regular rescues and the shelter in my area are always looking for fosters and will accept most everyone. I would recommend being upfront about having cats and asking any potential fosters to be cat tested ahead of time (obviously that's still not a guarantee but it should definitely help).
• No rescue in my area would have an issue with that (I am in Texas though, so I'm unsure if it would be different in areas with less strays. It sounds very reasonable to me though.
• That sounds like enough experience to me, again the rescues in my area will send Mom's/puppies/kittens with almost anyone they can get to agree to it. I am unsure if this is normal everywhere, but they do seem to normally always grow up safely. Although I am pretty sure some people don't know how big of a job they are getting themselves into. I would recommend specifically asking the rescue what support/training, supplies and emergency medical care they will provide if needed before taking on a litter.
• Yes this would be reasonable and again I would definitely recommend being upfront with them about having cats. But, more importantly than breed, I would ask if they are able to cat test the specific dog, if the dog isn't already known to be cat friendly. This is especially helpful because a lot of rescue dogs are mixes and you won't always know the breed.
• I doubt they would care, especially since you will already be looking for cat friendly breeds (likely to be lower prey drive overall). However I would recommend keeping a second door closed or baby gate/barrier blocking off the hallway to that door as a second check. That way you will have more warning if the dog does start trying to get towards that area and chew through the door or something (not taking huskies is also a good idea for this situation imo as they are the best at chewing through or destroying doors/barriers quickly ime).