Help us save more lives. Fostering frees space for other animals in need.
Want to make the world a better place? Take home a foster pet. Fostering means temporarily taking in a cat or dog – or parrot, or baby pig, or any other homeless pet – with the goal of nurturing them until they can be placed into a permanent home with a family who’ll love them forever.
Although the Southampton Animal Shelter does its best to make our animals feel as comfortable as possible, there are some pets that do not do well in a shelter environment. Instead, they fare much better in a home setting with one-on-one attention. However, every foster is unique.
Some simply need a little TLC and a break from the shelter – especially if they’ve been with us for a while. Then there are the very young that need time to grow and be socialized. We may get animals that have a medical issue that requires 24/7 care – which we cannot provide, and, there are some that just need a comfortable place to live out their days due to a terminal illness.
Why Foster?
- Fostering increases an animal’s chance of getting adopted
- It saves lives by freeing up space for other pets in need
- It gives pets a chance to shine outside of the shelter setting
- Foster pets learn they are safe and loved
- Your own pets will learn more social skills
- It’s a great option if you are not in the position to adopt
- Fostering is flexible – you can choose how and when
- It can help you heal after the death of a beloved pet
- Fostering can enrich your life by making pets feel better about their world
- If you fall in love, you can adopt & become a foster failure!
The shelter will provide instructions for fostering, all necessary medical care and supplies. Foster periods will vary with each animal.
Foster-to-Adopt situations typically last two weeks (or less) before adoption is finalized.