Fostering is one of the kindest and hardest things to do in the world. It is only natural for foster parents to wonder: “will my foster dog miss me?”
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Fostering pets is increasingly becoming popular. The year 2020 saw almost 55,000 pets being fostered. Fostering is a great way for rescued stray dogs and other pets to adapt to the home environment after which they are finally sent to their true owners.
If you keep your dog as a foster, then whether he or she will miss you or not depends on your relationship with your dog. If your bond as a pet and parent is powerful, they are very likely to miss you.
If your relationship is more mechanical, and you are focused on just the health and training of the pet, he might easily forget you. On the other hand, if you shower your foster dog with love, you are asking for trouble because you know that he has to leave you someday.
It is best to draw a line somewhere, so that the dog might feel love but will not become depressed or anxious when it gets rehomed.
The emotions that your dog might face will also be dependent on his personality. Some dogs feel abandoned if you leave them, whereas other dogs are not affected at all.
We will talk about fostering and its benefits and common mistakes that people end up making while sending their dogs to their forever home.
What Is A Foster Home For Dogs? How Is It Different From a Rescue Home?
Many people can get easily confused between a foster home and a rescue home for dogs.
Foster Home
A foster home is a temporary home given to a pet. This home is a place for them during the transition period when the shelter is looking to find their forever homes.
Many animal lovers choose to become foster parents, helping these animals transition from a stray or injured animal to a healthy, happy and well trained one, so that they can easily be adopted.
Foster homes are an excellent option for dogs to receive better care, support and one-to-one attention than they will get at a shelter home. Moreover, fostering pets also helps prevent shelters from overcrowding.
Rescue Homes
On the other hand, rescue homes are permanent housing solutions for pets. If someone saves a pet, then in most cases, they end up adopting the pet as well.
Animal rescues are typically volunteer run, and may not be a formal living arrangement for the animals like a dog shelter these are often run by few individuals who give out their time, money and homes to these animals and may often adopt them as well.
Both rescue homes and shelter homes often use foster homes as a place for the animal to be treated humanely and to be allowed to recover, heal and learn to live life joyfully again.
Meanwhile, these shelters and rescue homes search for a forever home for the animal, and most pets do have a better chance of getting adopted if their health and vigor for life improves.
If more and more foster parents sign up for fostering pets, pet shelters will not suffer from a lack of supplies. Enabling more foster homes will save pets and create a safer environment for animals.
Why Are Foster Homes Important?
Increased Chance of Adoption
Foster families can provide the ideal environment for the pests to thrive in. If you foster pets, there is a massive increase in their chances of getting adopted. People coming for adoption can also see the pet’s personality that they are adopting in their natural habitat.
Help The Dogs Understand That Not All Human are Bad!
Pet dogs will develop all their personality traits. Some pet dogs develop a fear of humans, and this fear is mainly because they have faced abandonment in the past. Foster homes will also develop the personality and the social skills of the pet.
Help Reduce Overcrowding in Shelters
Did you know that nearly 920,000 cats and dogs are put down every year in shelter homes because of a lack of space and resources?
Pet shelters are mostly overrun with pets, and animals cannot have a healthy life there. Many pet animals end up dying due to the lack of nutrition and proper care at such shelters. Foster homes are an excellent place for such pets.
If you love animals, this also provides you with a perfect opportunity to help them. Foster homes can also help you to contribute to saving a pet’s life.
Fostering It’s Not All Fun and Games
Fostering a dog can be a very great thing that you can do for a pet dog. If you wish to have a pet, fostering a pet will provide a home and support to an animal in need.
However, fostering is hard work. You have to look after an animal for weeks or months on end, knowing fully well that you will have to give them up one day.
You do a lot of hard work, healing the dog both physically and mentally, feeding it, caring for it, making a bed and place to stay for it. Especially if you are a new pet parent, you can make quite a few mistakes while looking after your foster dogs.
Some of the common mistakes made by foster parents are:
Giving Up Too Easily
Don’t let the happy videos online fool you into thinking that dogs will automatically start respecting and playing with you just because you are giving them food and shelter. Many foster parents spend weeks trying to gain the trust of their animal friend.
What you cannot do is to abandon a dog who has already been abandoned by the world once before: it will reinforce the thought in their mind that they are all alone in this world. Once you take the responsibility, it is your job to slowly bring around changes in the dog’s behavior through love, attention and care.
Forgetting Mealtime
Foster parents can forget about feeding their dogs as they may not be used to the company of a dog in their homes. Remembering the mealtime of your foster dog is essential for their safety and nutrition. You will have to create a proper schedule for your dog. This will help them to develop a habit of having their meals.
Keeping Toys in Front of The Dog
You should not keep the toys for your dogs near them or in their plain sight. Some dogs can be very naughty with toys and can create problems for you. Moreover, if you have more than one dog at your home, they can fight among themselves for these toys.
Not Making Furniture Rules
This is a common mistake that new or rookie pet owners make when bringing in a foster dog. They don’t specify the in-house rules for their dogs.
If you have brought in a younger dog, they might ruin or cause damage to your furniture. You can avoid this problem by setting some rules for your dog as soon as you get them in your house.
Forgetting To Set Boundaries
You need to form boundaries and restrictions with your dogs as they get familiar with you and your home. Foster parents tend to forget it as they have thought that the pets are not going to stay with them for a long time.
In some cases, the foster pets can remain at foster homes for months or even years. There are rare cases where the foster parents adopt the foster pets on their own.
Not Paying Enough Attention
If you have multiple pets or dogs at your home, you can unknowingly divide your attention and care between them. This can make your foster dog feel lonely and abandoned.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do dogs get sad when leaving foster?
Yes and no, depending on the bond he developed while staying with you.
The answer to this question is yes and no. In most cases, dogs feel a bit sad when they are sent to foster care. This is mainly because as time passes, dogs develop a sense of attachment to places and people.
Dogs are territorial animals; when they are made to change their territories often, this can take an emotional toll on them. It is common for foster dogs to experience depression and anxiety. If your pet dog was happy at their previous home, then the depression and anxiety will be more prominent.
Is it normal to miss a foster dog?
Yes, for a human being it is completely normal.
Yes, it is normal for a person to miss a foster dog and a foster dog to miss you. If you are looking after foster care dogs, it is pretty standard for you to get attached to them. Dogs are very affectionate animals, so they can quickly develop an attachment with people and places.
There is a chance that you have spent days, months, and even years with a dog in foster care. When the dog is being sent to a new home, then there is a chance that they’ll miss you.
Do dogs feel abandoned when rehomed?
Yes, they can feel abandoned, especially if the foster made the crucial mistake of making the dog think this is their forever home.
Yes, dogs feel a sense of abandonment when they are rehomed. Some of these dogs like the company of other dogs in foster care homes. They also develop good relationships with the caretakers at these foster homes.
Rehoming can be a stressful experience for the dogs. Depression and anxiety are common occurrences for dogs. If the dogs are being rehomed to happy homes, then after some time, they’ll get over the anxiety and depression.
How do you say goodbye to fostering a dog?
There are many ways in which you can continue the relationship. Goodbyes don’t need to be final.
Saying goodbye to your foster dog can be difficult. You can grow attached to the foster dog, so saying goodbye to them can be tough. You can say goodbye to your foster dog. If you feel too emotional, take a deep breath and approach the situation.
Suppose you talk to the new foster parents of the dog and can schedule regular meets with the dogs. Then this could help you and your dog ease the process of settling into the new home.
Final Words
Your foster dog might miss you if during its temporary days you both achieve to build a strong bond. But it is also possible that your dog will forget you after some time. Hence don’t worry about your foster dog.
Thank you for reading, we hope that our words have helped you understand both the joy and the effort needed for fostering. You may also like to read: What Happens to Dogs That Dont Get Adopted?
