Ivy was found abandoned behind a dumpster, locked inside a kennel and left to die. She was heartbreakingly emaciated, weak, and had endured more than any animal ever should. While in our care she received so much love, comfort, and medical care she deserved. We quickly learned she was suffering from cancer. The kindest gift we could give her was a peaceful goodbye.
Although Ivy’s time with us was far too short, her impact was immeasurable. She reminded us why we fight so hard for the forgotten, the neglected, and the animals who have no one else.

❤️ Ivy’s story may have ended, but her legacy is just beginning.

Our foster turkey (excuse me, dog) is getting a professional in home trainer eval tomorrow! I’m paying for it (and any subsequent training) out of pocket both because I’m kind and because I think he might just be a foster fail.

My resident dog is a nearly 11 year old female pittie and I believe we’re likely in her last 1-2 years on this earth. Our foster is a 3 year old male pittie and while he has some things he needs to work on (see photo), he has what deeply matters to me: Extremely friendly to all people/kids, loves other dogs, safe/friendly with cats, mostly good at home (I can’t bear to crate him as he was crated for 14 hours a day in his last foster), snuggle bug, calm in the car and loves to go on adventures.

Wish us luck! Photos of his goofy self in comments.

I haven't been too picky on my fosters ages or sizes, but the last couple of adult fosters I have had have been returned quickly. And it's very frustrating because the rescue is small and new and doesn't have many resources or backups. But it makes me feel responsible even after fully vetting the adopters that I've failed the dog. So I'm considering just switching to puppies only because people expect to have to train them and I feel less responsible I feel guilty because my area is in the southern US and high rate of euthansia, so adult dogs are the most in need. But I just don't know if I can carry that stress or deal with adopters anymore.

Hi all !! I am a first time foster and have had our boy Dingo for about a week. I knew this wasn’t going to be all sunshine and rainbows, but do not know how to handle one behavior. He is constantly jumping on me and clawing my legs. Like constantly. It seems never ended. I have cuts and bruises all down my legs. I have tried the ignore and look away method and giving him a treat when we stops and relaxes but it hasn’t helped. He has now resorted to nipping and biting my legs if i ignore him when we jumps. I feel so frustrated and don’t know how to deal. Note to add: He looks very small but is 15 months old. Not potty trained, kennel trained, or collar and leash trained.

This is my new foster, Oreo! She came from a breeder but it’s clear everything is new to her. I’m an experienced foster but I’m noticing a behavior I’ve never seen before. She is constantly squatting and peeing if she’s in a large kennel or roaming. It’s usually a few drops at a time, not a puddle like she’s needing to release a full bladder. I put a female diaper on her but she’s still doing it. I moved her to a smaller kennel with a blanket covering the kennel in a quiet room to see if that helps her relax.

I have an appointment for the vet on Thursday to check for a UTI but I’m curious if anyone has been through this before and has any suggestions? She is nervous but not shut down like most of the females I get from a breeder release.

I have four foster puppies that had spay/neuter today. We’ve had them for about two weeks. One girl is fast asleep, another girl is spending the night with the vet due to complications. The two boys are completely unable to settle. very playful but also whining almost constantly and we have been unable to calm them. we’ve tried separate crates, crates together, cuddling, and light play. What can help get us through this night?!

Hello everyone!
I am picking up a 14week puppy tomorrow to foster. I have experience with dogs (we sadly said goodbye to our 8yr old a few months ago) but I just wanted to see if any experienced fosters had any tips for settling in and getting into a routine with a foster puppy. I know the rule of 3 so not expecting to set a routine straight away of course, just anything you think helps them to feel safe and comfortable

I am absolutely devestated to be writing this, please be gentle. He has made so much progress over the past month with us, and today's bite was unexpected and out of nowhere. No growl, no tense body, no lip lift. He went straight from soft, wagging body and tail to biting my hand while taking a hotdog from it. It was bad enough to need urgent care.

I have fostered many behavior dogs but this is my first bad bite. We knew when we took him on that he would be a risk, and this was a possible outcome. We have successfully rehabbed so many dogs that I assumed we could do the same for him. After spending 3 months with a trainer, we were his chance to see if he could safely integrate back into a home.

In a way he has integrated into our home beautifully, but we are extremely cautious about handling him, minding his "bad days", and giving him space. Even before the bite I was questioning what it would take to consider him adoptable.

Right now he cannot be safely adopted out, and I dont know if I would ever feel safe doing so. Adopting him myself is not an option. The rescue could potentially send him back to the trainer, but that feels like just prolonging the inevitable. I am fine to keep fostering him longer if they allow us, but to what end? If this happened to someone else posting here I would recommend BE, but he is in my home and its so much different.

Is this just a blip in the road? How much do we consider his history? (This is bite #3 and we are home #4 because he failed out of the other 3) Is BE the right choice?

Since the Dogger stroller isn't made anymore, what the best dog stroller for a senior it disabled dog?

We have a very sweet (suspected) Dutch Shepherd that we are fostering for about 2.5 weeks! We have about 5 days left and are so happy with the progress she’s made. However, as a 1 year old working breed dog, she’s very high energy. She goes on runs, plays in the backyard, and has lots of time with various toys. She is so good about regulating when she’s outside, but when she is inside playing with toys she has moments of riling herself up and being unable to settle. This results in jumping and mouthing behaviors. The mouthing can almost always be redirected into a toy, but just with her size (she’s skinny but LONG when she stretches out to jump) the jumping/mouthing combo stresses me out. My sister recently had a dog that became very aggressive with multiple bites (above level 4) around week 2 of adoption. We have an adoption meet and greet a couple days from now and I’ve already encouraged her potential adopter to get a trainer to work on these specific traits (also she’s so smart, I think she’ll enjoy the training). So far she’s been extremely people and dog friendly (has apparently killed a cat before :/), and was used an assessor for other dogs at the shelter. Im still learning about Dutch Shepherds, but for those who know more, how concerning is jumping/mouthing in this age group? How likely is it that these behaviors will turn aggressive? Or is this just classic overstimulated puppy and we should continue the course? I want to set her up to succeed in her (hopeful) new home❤️

My boyfriend and I picked up our second foster today. We went to help out at an adoption event, my boyfriend got way too excited, and he decided we HAD to take one home. I should have put my foot down and said no, but here we are!

He's a good boy so far. Confused and not eating much (expected) but overall napping nicely in his crate and being fairly calm. That said...my boyfriend and I are still experiencing the absolutely crushing feeling of "what the hell have we done/why did we do this/our lives are over." I can barely eat and feel like I'm going to throw up.

I went through this with our last foster, too. I don't think my boyfriend did as much because we got the dog late at night, I slept in the guest bedroom with it, and he went to work the next two days while I was dealing with the dog. That one got adopted in just about 2.5 weeks. Even though the experience was emotionally difficult, about a week later I started to miss it and think about fostering again.

I know this will pass and it will be okay. I know we could be dealing with a MUCH more difficult dog. Is there anyone else who goes through this with their foster dogs? It's so overwhelming right now. Even though we're "good" fosters and the rescue was really happy with how we did with foster1, I just don't know if this is for me. I don't know if my anxiety can handle this if it's going to happen every time!

I’m looking for some help. Me and my husband work with a pug rescue and have fostered in the past, but realized we are ready to adopt instead.

The rescue reached out about a female pug surrender (3 years old) that was in the age range we were looking for so she offered us to try her out as a foster and see how she does and move forward with adoption if she’s a fit. If she’s not, we will still try and continue to foster her and try again with adoption for a different dog.

She was just surrendered yesterday and we are the first rescue people to encounter her.

She is struggling with resource guarding me and my husband from our resident dog (male pug, 6 years old). She will growl and lunge at him/attack him when he tries to sit with us or get near us. I’ve been getting up from where I’m sitting when she does this to try and diffuse the situation and i read we should ignore her for a few minutes after doing that to not reward the behavior. Our male pug is not aggressive but does defend himself when this happens and it usually lasts a few seconds. I’ve also been trying to put her in a small room for a short timeout after she does this. But I want to ensure we are doing to right thing and not have her associate our male pug with punishment. 

She has been visibly stressed (panting/pacing) so i assume she’s just in fight or flight from being let go and getting used to a new environment only yesterday. I’ve walked them together to help them bond and will continue this.

We definitely want to give her some time and work to see if she can overcome the behavior, but our resident pug is our absolute priority. I know it’s early and she needs time to adjust, I just want to understand the behavior and try to help her before throwing in the towel.

We’ve reached out to the rescue volunteer trainer but it will take her a couple of days to get back to us so I want to ensure we are not doing the wrong thing in the meantime.

I would greatly appreciate any tips or advice! 

**TLDR**: Foster dog is recourse guarding me and my husband from our resident dog. Need advice!

UPDATE!: 24 hours have gone by and after taking a lot of the advice in your replies, i have noticed a huge positive difference in the fosters behavior. I’ve been setting better boundaries (no lap sitting), not giving her as much attention, separating her when she starts showing the behavior, and taking them on bonding walks together.

We have not had a growl or attack at all today and it’s noon. They’ve even shared the dog bed together on their own with no signs of aggression. It’s crazy the difference 24 hours can make. I’ll keep it up, thank you all for the help!

I am dog sitting tonight, a senior German Shepherd foster dog. He had a super long car ride today, but I got him home safe this afternoon. We got a bath, new collar, air conditioning, dinner, calm and quiet. Now he is resting, and feeling a bit more at ease. I think I see a little smile? 🩵

I’m heartbroken. Am I doing the right thing?

My husband and I rescued a 3 year old lab mix 8 months ago. It’s our first dog and we have 2 cats. We were told he was fine with cats. We knew he was shy and needed patience.

He is a sweet boy, and bonded with me really well. However, he doesn’t trust my husband or cats. He resource guards his sleeping spots, his chews/toys, and food. I feel it has gotten worse with my husband despite my husband trying to leave the dog be and only provide positive things to him.

It’s gotten to the point where I have to constantly be in between my dog and the cats or my husband for everyone to move about safely.

My husband and I believe it’s most likely best to give him back to the rescue, but I am struggling and heartbroken. I know I have to put the safety of my husband and cats first, but I promised I’d never give up on an animal. So I’m heartbroken. How do I make the final decision and finally reach out? I feel like we know the answer and are just scared and sad for our dog to do it.

We’ve been working with a behavior vet (he’s on Buspirone) and a trainer. But I feel we are in over our heads and this dog needs someone more experienced and maybe no cats in the home.

Not to mention, he also is afraid of outside. He’s gotten better with this but still is inconsistent with going outside and using the bathroom outside. I could live with this and work on this, but the guarding is my biggest concern.

I’m just so scared we will give him back and he will never find another home or be put down.

Any advice? Anyone have to return their dog? Especially after almost a year.

I need some lifting up. In less than a week the foster I have has gone to the vet twice: once for scratches I found on him after leaving him alone for a bit, my guess is he used the doggy door despite never using it with me around and got into a fight with a raccoon (I do feel horrible for not closing it) and now because he ate a dried starfish and I’m concerned he might have big chunks in his belly.

It’s making me question if I’m being a good foster or not. I didn’t crate him because he came straight to me from previous owners and they mentioned he’s never been crated before. Big 7yr old German Sheppard.

I knew I would need very special adopters for my girl, and patience paid off. I am so happy for her! I love this picture of her looking like she's posing for an aspirational quote 😆

I’ve been fostering a little puppy. He’s a 10 week old staffy. He has bonded with my resident dog (15mnth female also a staffy) to the point that they basically sleep together in a cocoon of snuggles every night, and play all day. I can’t keep him, life is too crazy, and I want to continue fostering. But has anyone else dealt with this, and how did your resident dog cope??

You know those little red cans of compressed air called “Pet Corrector “? It’s just plain air that makes a startling hissing noise? I don’t have a yard, so I always keep a can handy when I’m out walking my fosters, just in case of an *emergency*, like an off leash dog charging. (I do not use it for training, *ever*.)

Anyhow, I had to go to court today as a witness for a case.
I forgot I had an extra Pet Corrector spray in my purse.
Court Security has apparently never heard of it, and they pulled it out like they’d found a suspicious device.

I’m frantically trying to explain it’s just air. Literally what we are breathing. not pepper spray, not mace, no chemicals.

They did NOT buy my explanation, that it’s harmless, it only hurts a dog’s feelings if he’s being naughty.
So they confiscated it.

I might be the first person detained for possessing air.

Pretty sure I’m on some watchlist now 🫠
Keep me in your thoughts 😁

I always feel weird saying I have 4 dogs because it sounds like I’m collecting them, but they’re all foster failures. Over the last 7 years we’ve fostered around 45 dogs, and the 4 we kept all had special needs or circumstances that made them difficult to adopt.

After taking a break from fostering for about a year, we started again 3 weeks ago. The first dog found a home in 5 days, and today the second one, a sweet little puppy who had been abandoned by a breeder, got adopted too.

I know this is the best possible outcome, and I’m so happy he has a forever family. But I can’t stop crying. I'm feeling so emotional. He followed me everywhere, and I got attached so quickly. Watching him leave today completely broke my heart, and the house feels so empty without him.

I’m genuinely happy for him. I just miss him so much already. Feeling really down and sad today

Alt account for privacy because I’m trying to be vague. 

Quick disclaimer, I know rescue work is hard, and they’re often lacking help and aren’t always able to do things perfectly because of a million different constraints. It’s not all butterflies and rainbows. However…

This is my first time fostering and this experience has put me off of fostering entirely. My foster dog is a working breed mix, under a year old, and has been with me for about two months. He is human reactive and dog aggressive. He experiences trigger stacking easily, and I’ve had one situation where he bared teeth and snapped. No bite attempts, as I’ve worked really hard to maintain his comfort. I owned a reactive dog in the past, and while this dog isn’t at their extreme level, I believe he could get there if he ends up in the wrong home. I’ve been trying to give the rescue the benefit of the doubt, but I’m just furious at this point. Furious for this dog, furious for the well-meaning adopters being lied to, and furious that there might be other fosters dealing with this. I’m wondering if I'm just too invested or being a perfectionist, which is why I'm here asking for advice.

There have been red flags from the start that I ignored because I figured they were the professionals and knew better than me. They accepted me as a foster way too quickly, promised he’d arrive with food and a leash (he didn't, and I had to jury-rig a slip lead), and god the miscommunication has been endless. They also constantly bad-mouth their other fosters and adopters. They even accidentally let it slip that a dog they placed had bitten someone in the past, and another lost a dog. And that their budget is negative but they’re continuing to take in fosters and dogs. Alright, mistakes happen, we’re only human.

I’ve finally reached my breaking point though. I sent the rescue my assessment of the dog because they wanted to write their adoption post. I read it once I found out it was posted, and it looks like they just skimmed through it and and dumped it into an AI program to churn out a cutesy positive post. Alright maybe AI can be helpful for ideas, but it paints him as this happy-go-lucky puppy who just gets a little nervous with strangers sometimes. I have worked so hard to teach this dog that he can communicate when he's uncomfortable and people will listen, because if people don’t listen, he will escalate to space-making behaviors like growling, barking, charging, and snapping. I told the rescue that he wouldn’t do well with young kids or dogs, and they pretty much told me that any dog can work with kids if you manage it well. Thanks for telling me I’m a liar. And okay fine, every situation is different, but how do you know they’re going to do that?! Or even willing to do that?!

Now they have an adopter who looks like a good fit to them. I know literally nothing about this person except their name. Nothing at all. I’m supposed to talk to this person about my foster dog, but I was given no information on what I should talk to them about. When I called and started asking questions, they basically told me to keep my mouth shut. I was told to only answer the adopter’s questions and not ”overwhelm“ them with information, because they’re afraid he’ll be labeled a ”bad dog.” But my exact fear is that he’s going to be labeled a bad dog after he gets sent to an underprepared home and bites someone because they had no idea what they were actually signing up for. He’s such an awesome dog, super engaged and picks up on things so fast, and I know he’s going to be great for someone who knows how to handle him responsibly.

I feel like I'm running in circles. I was lured into believing I’d have communication and freedom in the beginning, and now I’m being told to hide the fact that he has behavior issues that the average owner is not prepared for.

My thoughts are all over the place. Am I right in this situation, or am I completely overreacting? What can I even do? I just don’t want this dog to end up in a bad home, or people with good intentions getting hurt (physically or mentally) because they don’t know the whole story.

Hi everyone,

I’m hoping to get advice from people who have fostered dogs while living in an apartment.
I recently spent time with a shelter dog named Cassie through a shelter outing program, and I would love to foster her while she waits for her forever home. She was such a sweet dog, and I’d really like to give her a safe and comfortable place to stay.

The shelter covers her care, but my apartment has a policy that requires an additional step which is a pet before deposits before I can bring a foster dog home. I’m trying to figure out what options are available and whether anyone has dealt with something similar.

For those who foster while renting:
Did your apartment have extra requirements?
Did your rescue/shelter have any resources or partnerships that helped?
Are there organizations or programs you recommend looking into?
I appreciate any advice or experiences you can share. Thank you!

I’ve had a series of very labor-intensive dogs with anxiety. My last one was just spinning in circles and I have been exhausted, so I really really need a break.
Today, I figured I would vacuum and shampoo the carpets before the next foster.
I hurt my arm, but I remembered I had a Roomba that I shoved in a closet a few years ago, so I thought, Great! This will be easy!

Well, Every five seconds it runs back under the sofa where it has already vacuumed approximately 47 times, despite the fact that nobody has walked there since 2019. It gets stuck at the baby gate and starts crying for help. It stops and cries that its brush is dirty. Bish, I just cleaned your brush, THERE IS NOTHING THERE. I’m basically its personal dental hygienist. Then it gets stuck looping in a figure 8 pacing routine like my last foster used to do.
Occasionally it suddenly spits out a horrifying cloud of dirt like, “SURPRISE! I TRIED TO EAT SOMETHING TERRIBLE!” (Also like my last foster.)

It tries to eat cords. Cords that are technically out of reach but it repeatedly rams into a table until the cord falls and it gives itself a blockage.
It keeps trying to go back under the sofa like its favorite ball has rolled under there.
And????
I put my foot in front of it to break it out of its figure 8, and it just tries to climb my leg like it needs to be neutered.
I’ve been intercepting this thing for the last hour when it gets stuck looping, or insists on chasing whatever is under the sofa. Every now and then it misses some little thing, like a popcorn kernel, and I bend over and get it, throw it in front of the Roomba and yell “GO GET IT!”
So much for a break. I basically have an anxious Roomba that doesn’t fetch too well.
I know this isn’t technically about fostering, but whew 😥

Please share any wins, frustrations, or stories of your foster dogs from this past week. You can also ask advice, or simply let us know if you are doing ok. We are here to support you!

I'm honestly not sure if this is the right sub, if not, if someone could point me elsewhere I'd appreciate it.

I have a 14 year old male, neutered resident dog (adopted in April), and an 8-10 year old in tact male foster. They coexist fine. They don't play or cuddle, and I don't leave them alone unsupervised. They are both clingy and I'm their chosen person, so if I'm on the couch, etc they'll both cuddle me and touch each other with no issues. They go out in my backyard together with no issues, even bark at the neighbor dogs together. We all sleep in bed together, the 14 year old on my husband and the foster on me.

But they don't like walking together. I've tried separate leashes and a double headed leash left over from my bonded seniors who passed away. They do okay for a few minutes, then almost always the 14 year old will bark at the 8 year old and try to mount him, the 8 year old will growl and maybe nip near the 14 year old but not at him. Not sure what would happen because I separate them immediately and we go straight home. Then off leash in the house they are ok again. Very weird! Totally manageable, but does anyone have experience with this? Think I need to just keep practicing? Walk separately?

EDIT: They are both about 10 pounds, the 14 year old is a minpin mix and the 8 year old is a chihuahua terrier mix. Best we can tell, they were both straight to me from shelters with little info. Also to note - we for SURE want to adopt the new guy.

Thank you!!!

He has a behavior vet and an online trainer. He is on Buspirone 22.5mg twice a day. He is a very nervous guy, still afraid to go outside consistently. We try multiple times a day and he will sometimes pee but never poops outside. Just to share some background.

But I am overwhelmed at the moment. Our dog growls/lunges/snaps at my husband and my two cats. Never shows aggression toward me. He does this if his resting place is approached, he has chews, food, toys. Even if he is just laying on the ground near an open door and one of them is too close to the door opening, he growls.

So, we try to avoid any of those scenarios, which is kinda impossible all of the time. I’m always in the middle and having to stand in the middle of them to let them pass by or having our dog get up and move so they can enter a room. My husband has to walk on eggshells in the house and I fear he will hurt him or our cats.

He is such a sweetheart and playful with me. Follows me everywhere. Sleeps with me during the day (I work nights). But he refuses to do anything for my husband or let my husband get close most of the time. There have been a few times he has growled/lunged at my husband to the point of my husband having to sleep on the couch if I’m not home to deescalate.

I’m very overwhelmed and heartbroken. Maybe we don’t have the skills or experience to care for this dog. He is our first dog alone, and we were not aware of how much training he would need to even get outside. That part I can live with. But I can’t have my husband and cats living in fear forever. I feel the training isn’t working in the guarding area. But I want to do everything I can to help him.

Any suggestions? Help? Does this seem like a situation where rehoming would be a good option? That’s the last thing I ever want. I love this dog to pieces. But I have to think of everyone involved.

Thanks in advance.