Recently, we have had to deny some applications. These people are nice, caring folks who, for one reason or another, didn’t meet the criteria for the pet in particular they were interested in adopting. Two of these applicants were sure to tell me that they were disappointed by my selfish behavior, denying my fosters a “chance at a loving home.” One suggested that I didn’t actually want to find homes for the animals in my care, and another asked “isn’t any home better than staying where she is?” One applicant wasn’t denied, but she withdrew her application because I asked questions that weren’t on the application.
The misconception that animals in rescue are in need of rescue is one that I hear all the time. When you adopt a pet from my organization, you’re not rescuing it from me. You’re contributing to the rescue process, an admirable and fantastic choice, but please stop to think about what you’re implying when you suggest that foster care is a bad thing.
Noble and Sully were cats that lived outside on a hoarder’s property, eating cat food that was dumped on a piece of vinyl siding every several days. They’d never seen a vet, had to find their own shelter under broken-down cars or in the neighboring woods, and went without food for sometimes days.
We arranged for transport and the cats were removed in the nick of time. The hoarder that owned the animals was so distraught when the first group left that she refused to let rescuers back to remove the rest of them. I drove almost two hours to meet Noble and Sully’s transport, picking them up at around midnight. They had had accidents in the carrier they were brought up in, and so in the back of my car I moved them to clean bedding in new carriers, and settled in for the drive home. Once I got back, I was tired but had to clean them up before I could go to bed. I bathed both cats with Dawn to kill the fleas and ticks that were on them, then again in a soothing oatmeal shampoo. I cut their nails and gave them exams. The Siamese was underweight by a few pounds and missing some teeth. He had an upper respiratory infection but all things considered, he was strong and “healthy.” The orange cat was another story. He is a tall, large cat but he stood in front of me as a skeleton. Emaciated, he weighed less than five pounds. He was so thin that I could close my thumb and middle finger around his waist. I found that he was missing almost all of his teeth, his eye socket was infected, and a film covered his remaining eye. He appeared to be blind, though over the weeks we realized that he does have vision in that eye. I set the cats up with high quality canned food and kibble, started them on antibiotics, dewormer and ear mite medication, and I fell into bed sometime in the wee hours of the morning. They remained quarantined in our large bathroom for the next month or so.
Noble before and after
Sully quickly recovered from his respiratory infection, gained back his weight, and kicked his parasites. He was neutered and had a dental cleaning. With two more feedings per day than the rest of the cats in the house, Noble has DOUBLED his weight and is still lean but a healthy and sleek body shape, and his infections and parasites are gone. His right eye wasn’t missing but instead, underdeveloped, and so it was removed when he was neutered. He continues to do well but seems to have irritable bowels. We were hoping this was a result of his starvation and that good diet and some steroid therapy would help him on the right track, but we are still managing it and attempting to get it under control. Both cats tested negative for feline lekemia and feline immunodeficiency virus. They are now up to date on vaccines and have been microchipped.
Sully recently, looking the picture of health!
The boys now live with our cats, freely roaming our home, getting attention when they seek it, playing with toys, getting into trouble (I’m-looking-at-you-Sully,) and enjoying a life they might never have had otherwise. Sully spends every night plastered to us like static cling, and Noble takes the morning shift. They have pet beds scattered throughout the house, play and receive enrichment daily, and they are cared for as we care for our own pets.
Rescuers are, with few exceptions, just doing the best they can to find permanent homes for the pets in their care. When we take in these animals, care for them as though they were our own, spend money from our pockets and time from our days to be sure their needs are met, we aren’t fulfilling our own agenda. We don’t know you personally, you are strangers to us. If we don’t approve your application for Sully because we don’t believe cats should live outdoors and you prefer yours to live that way, I’m not making a judgment of your character, it simply means that we are not a good fit for each other. If you are denied for one of our pets because you don’t believe in going to a vet, I’m not snubbing you. I’ve seen the good that comes from routine exams and medical care and that is what I want for my rescue’s pets. When I ask questions, please don’t take it personally, I just want to get to know you. They’re not numbers whizzing through a facility, in danger of euthanasia any day. Foster homes are not your standard dog, cat, guinea pig, rat, etc. lovers. We have created a lifestyle around caring for animals that needed advocates, giving them our time, money, and our hearts. I care about you, and what you are looking for, but that can’t be my first priority. Maybe my decision has caused us to miss out on a fabulous home- yours- but please understand why I’d rather pass up a good thing than make a decision that could result in stress or tragedy for our fosters.
One more thing- now that you know this, please don’t think that these animals don’t need adopted and that you are better off going elsewhere. Foster homes often help animals that aren’t ready for adoption, and so adopting from us means opening up space and giving another animal a chance that they wouldn’t have. Those fearful dogs that have never stepped outside puppy mills, animals like Noble who have health issues that need sorted out, they need foster care. Adopting from a foster home benefits you in that you have a first-hand account of your new pet’s behavior that you probably couldn’t get from a shelter, and it opens up space for animals that need the specialized care a foster home can provide.
Thank you to everyone that fosters, adopts, or applies to adopt. You are part of the rescue community and you are making a difference. I’m sorry if it didn’t work out between us, but I still wish you the best.
Noble supervises from the arm of my recliner while I write this blog post!
Saving Starfish 