Why We Foster Westies…

Recently, my mom has gotten a lot of comments and questions from people when we mention we foster dogs for Westie Rescue Southeast. So today I thought I would turn the keyboard over to mom so she could answer some of the most common asked questions.

• Why do you foster?
  We started thinking about fostering after going to our first West Highland White Terrier meet-up. We met a foster dog named Doc and his foster siblings Sparky and Morgan. Seeing Doc interact with the other Westies and hearing about his hard life really made us start to think about what we could do to help. At the meet the group held an auction and all proceeds went to Westie Rescue Southeast, a new rescue group that we discovered was only two hours away from us. We also saw how much fun Preston had interacting with other Westies that weekend and realized he needed more dog friends his own size. So after a lot of debate and discussion we decided to give it a shot and the rest was history.
• How Long Do the Foster Dogs Live With You?
  A foster dog family can offer a “soft spot to fall” — and a place for these dogs to get ready for their forever home. Some dogs take longer to find their home than others. We have fostered three dogs so far..Dancer who was with us a day, Tommy was at our house a month and ½ and Elvis has been with us for almost two months so far. So it all depends on if someone says I want him and their adoption paperwork is approved. But we are committed to keeping each and every one until the perfect forever home is found.
• Are They a Part of The Family or Do You Just Keep Them in a Crate and Feed Them?
  All our fosters are a full part of the family from day one. They come to training classes with Preston(to watch) and on car rides too. If we go to a dog friendly event they are with us too. Now, Preston still gets special alone time so he doesn’t get jealous as well. We don’t ever want our fostering to cause behavior issues in Preston. But overall we feel that to do a good job fostering and to help the Westie to become a great pet to someone he needs to be treated as a pet. They must also become use to every day things a pet would encounter as well.
• What Else is Involved With Fostering?
  Sometimes the fosters do have some health issues that you help solve. Elvis, for example, has ear infections so we treat his ears daily. Sometimes being a foster mom/dad involves transport. If someone wants to meet your foster you sometimes can drive several hours to them. Depending on the rescue group you choose to work with there may be extra expenses. For example you may buy the food the dog eats or needs to purchase an extra kennel or bed for your home. However, all of these items can be a tax write-off I do admit I probably spend to much on our fosters. I also get them extras such as their own toys and blankets. I feel like they have led such a hard life the least I can do is to buy them their very own(and in many times first) collar , leash, toy, etc.
• What about Preston? Isn’t it Not Fair to Him to Have to Share His Parents?
  This is a question we worry about alot with Preston. We never want to do anything that will negatively impact him. But I think he gets a lot of positive from having a foster too. First, all the fosters we have had he has instantly bonded with and have become buddies. He plays with them, and they chase cats together. And he even shows them some of his bad habits like how to beg for treats to our dismay
• Why Don’t You Keep Them..Don’t You Like Them?
  Oh i don’t just like them, I LOVE them all! So I have moments where I want to keep them and make them a permanent part of our family. It is especially hard when they become attached to you and snuggle up beside you, or give you a doggie kiss. But I keep in the back of my head if I keep him then I can’t foster anymore and I can’t help any more Westies find forever homes. Plus, it helps that I know that the new forever family has been carefully screened by the rescue and are really truly good homes for my special Westies.
•  How Can You Give Them Up?
  That’s a tough question. And I ask myself that question every time it is time to say goodbye. The WRSE coordinator will probably get a laugh out of this when she reads this but every time I see her number pop up on my cell phone I get an uneasy feeling in my stomach and for a spit second it is oh no..she is calling to take my little white dog away. lol. But then immediately follows it another emotion takes over…..someone wants my little man….oh boy!! When it is time to actually say goodbye tears are shed on the car ride there and it is so hard to see them walk out that door with a new mom and dad. But it is an amazing experience as well. You get to see how happy the new owners are and they are so excited to welcome their new family member. Then if I’m lucky they will send a photo of the Westie in their home playing or laying down resting on the bed and that is when I know I did the right thing letting him go.

Part of the joy of fostering is knowing that the animal will get a great new family that will truly benefit from your efforts. Plus, if I’m upset or miss having our foster around our rescue coordinator will gladly give us another westie to foster asap.  So I hope you will consider fostering at some point. It is an amazing and wonderful experience!