What is the point of fostering? - Meet Rusty

Walking with Rusty

Now here is one valid reason why fostering is a wise idea.  Fostering a dog or a cat is a handy way to find out if it is for you. You can take on an animal for a while and see if it is a suitable choice, and if not, you can give the animal back.

Fostering an animal - mostly dogs, but also cats - can be a life-changing and enriching experience. It can also be an eye-opener. Let me explain that in a little more detail. 

When I fostered Rusty, an older Springer Spaniel with some hound thrown into the mix, I didn't really know what to expect. I had never had a dog before, my only experience of a dog in the house was more based on hearsay than anything else. When I was a baby, my parents had a very loyal German shepherd that my father already had before he got married. That German shepherd guarded my pram when I was sleeping outside the house (no problem in those days!). So that was more or less the extent of my experience with dogs.

I consider myself a cat person, and my cat would wisely nod if he could read this. When I decided to foster a dog, my motivation was threefold: to help out Paw Pourri, finding a permanent home for the dog, and at least, give the dog a nice holiday. Those were my reasons for fostering but little did I know what would happen.

Rusty learning stuff about archaeology

Deliberately, I opted for an older dog, one that would not find a new home easily. Most people want young animals, animal babies if possible, and they want purebreds. Maybe they want them more as accessories than pets. I don't know, but I would always go for the "underdogs" and "undercats".

First, I had to get used to walking the dog before and after work no matter what. As I noticed that he was much livelier and happier when he could explore new walks, I often took him to the beach or the shore, or somewhere where he could just run around without any constraints. That of course took up quite a bit of time, but I got more exercise, and the dog got much fitter, too!

I took him to outings where there were people, to meetings and to any kind of gatherings of people who would tolerate a dog in their midst - for the simple reason that I wanted to expose him to as many people as possible. I was hoping that somebody would fall in love with his kind and happy temperament and offer him a permanent home. Unfortunately, that didn't happen. Not on my watch anyway. (Don't worry, there is a happy end to the story!)

Rusty with his new fosterer - happy!

What did happen though was that after I posted a request for a new foster home for Rusty, a lovely foster family took him in who had read the post. He was very happy there, and he calmed their two terriers down a lot with him demeanour.

And then the totally unexpected happened! All of a sudden, weeks after posting on Facebook, there were two families interested in taking him in for good. One of them met him, and immediately fell in love with him. So now Rusty is living with his forever adopted parents, having the happiest time of his life with them. (Rusty had been abandoned just like that by his family when he was about 10).

But that was not all that happened. When the post on Facebook appeared asking for fosterers, we had a few inquiries of people who had never made contact before. They will now be fostering as well. And spread the word among their friends. A colleague of mine is now fostering a lovely dog. A family with two girls took on a foster puppy when they read about it.

And this is how the magic is being spread...

I have never wanted to have a full-time dog, and this foster experience - albeit a great one - confirmed that I am a cat person. Fostering a dog or a cat is a handy way to find out if it is for you. You can take on an animal for a while and see if it is a suitable choice, and if not, you can give the animal back. There is nothing worse than buying (not the best option anyway!) an animal and then finding out that it was the wrong thing to do. Paw Pourri is dealing with the fallout of such bad choices only too often.

If you want to become a fosterer, call us on 087 9460061 or send us a message on Facebook. We will then have a chat with you about the best options, and take it from there!

Rusty and his foster adventures

I'm not quite sure where I got that idea of fostering a dog came from - maybe from friends of mine who did the same though they had already taken in a rescue dog and had some cats of their own. And why a dog? I'm a cat person!

Within a few weeks of having the initial idea of fostering a dog I made contact with Paw Pourri in Ennis as it was the closest shelter to where I live. We arranged for Rusty, an older springer spaniel boy, to be handed over at the Paw Pourri shop in Ennis. It was a Saturday which was perfect because the dog and myself would have a long weekend to get to know each other.

Marie gave me food, Rusty's bed, shampoo, poo bags and a lead and more stuff for him, and I had already bought a lot of treats. We were good to go!

When we arrived at home, I took him for a walk so that he could get to know the area and myself a bit better. Then I washed him, and let him settle in. My cat was a bit worried because Rusty was so much bigger than him, but Rusty totally ignored him. It was as if he didn't even see the cat. He also ignored any barking, aggressive terriers a few days later when we went for a walk on the shore. He is the most gentle, loving dog you could imagine.

An older dog like Rusty is ideal for somebody like me who is working all day and can't go for hour-long walks in the morning and again in the evening. He doesn't need that much exercise anymore, and is quite happy to sleep. Or follow me around in the house and garden.

I was surprised how good he was walking on the lead - and off it! He had obviously been well trained, and he is so easy to get on with outside.

There is much to be said to take on an older animal, be it a dog or a cat, or any animal really. It is very rewarding when you think how much joy you bring to their lives by giving them a bit of attention and give them a good - foster or furrever - home.

And to answer my question in the beginning - why would I as a cat person want to foster a dog? Very simply because it is easier for me to give the dog back or to the new adopting humans. That does by no means mean that I don't like dogs. It is just that little bit easier... 


If you want to become a fosterer, call us on 087 9460061 or send us a message on Facebook. We will then have a chat with you about the best options, and take it from there!