Thursday, August 27, 2009

The realities of fostering...

This doesn't happen in all foster homes, but if you foster several pets at once, you may find your life becoming a bit like this:

Baby gates separate various rooms in your house.


Your favorite fleece jacket gets ripped to shreds and is turned into a favorite dog toy.

Your back yard gets a giant bare spot where grass may never grow again.

Your favorite teddy bear is in constant danger of being destuffed. Again.


The expensive dog bed you purchased becomes a favorite cat window.


By the way, the animals pictured in these photos were not responsible for the damage shown here. Except Remi, my Great Dane. He's totally responsible for the destuffing of Teddy.



But here's the other reality of fostering...




Every dog and cat just pictured was an animal that was running out of time at an animal control facility and would likely have been euthanized if I had not fostered it, and had some kind person not adopted the animal. And that makes the messy house and the damaged belongings and the bare spots in the yard all worth it, to have helped save so many lives.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Laurie,
You are my hero.
Mom

Dog Foster Mom said...

Aww, thanks Mom! That means a lot to me. Especially since you're the one who bought me the fleece jacket that's become a dog toy. I hope it helps a bit to know that it's one of their favorite toys.

JulieB said...

I just got a tear in my eye... or perhaps several. ;) So true Laurie! The minor inconveniences that one deals with when fostering pale in comparison to the love and joy we get from our foster animals.