Foster Program

We are thrilled to welcome you to HSWA’s Foster Care Program. Your efforts allow us to expand our ability to help the pets in our care by providing a home environment for cats, kittens, dogs and puppies who do best outside of the shelter. By opening your home to these animals in need, you are helping us in our mission to provide the best level of care possible while we work to find displaced pets new homes.

HSWA uses foster homes for a variety of needs, including: kittens or puppies too young and/or immature to be adopted, animals that require more socialization than available at the shelter, older or senior animals that will be more comfortable in a home environment, injured animals and/or those recovering from surgery, neglected or abused animals that need tender loving care, animals suffering from “shelter stress” in need of a calming home environment, animals with colds or with special medical need, abandoned mothers with litters of kittens or puppies, animals too big to fit comfortably in the adoption room, cattery cage or kennel, any animal when the shelter becomes overcrowded. Our foster program is not intended to be a trial period for adoption, or for “adoption ready” pets. If you are trying to determine if you are ready to adopt an animal, it is best to speak to the adoption staff, as opposed to going through the foster program. Pets that are ready for the adoption floor will generally not be placed into foster care.

Not all foster homes will be able to take all kinds of pets, so part of your orientation process will be identifying the abilities of your home and family and what you feel your capabilities are to assist animals in need. While incredibly rewarding, fostering pets can be emotionally demanding and time consuming and we recognize that it is not for everyone.

Kitten Foster Resources

If you are a new or first time foster to kittens, we highly recommend watching videos created by The Kitten Lady, Hannah Shaw. The Kitten Lady shows you, step by step, how to set up for kittens of all ages, care for kittens of all ages, and prepare for the next litter you will (hopefully) foster.

We have also begun using Maddie’s Pet Assistant to help track your foster kitten’s progress. Watch this introduction video to see what it’s all about.