Foster Homes Needed Today
By joining our Foster Family program, you can offer the safety and healing environment of your home to a dog either waiting in a shelter for euthanasia or for rescue. The more volunteer foster families we have, the more dogs we can save from death in noisy, cold and uncaring shelters.
Can you help?
Dogs that have been in foster homes have a much better chance of finding their forever homes. Dogs in shelters and kennels are upset and distracted. Nobody is aware of their funny little habits. They're anonymous and most, not coincidentally, are just past their cute puppyhood. Does he sit when asked? Does he walk well on his leash? Does he love stuffed animals or playing ball? Knowing these things and more about a dog helps them find their forever homes very quickly. You know there is someone for everyone, right? That's even more true with dogs!
We evaluate and take in as many adoptable dogs as we can from our local shelters. There are always dogs waiting, and every day, every week, we run out of boarding options and must turn down a German Shepherd. Most are out of time already. Without foster families available, we are forced to make the difficult decision to leave the dog behind at the shelter.
The most difficult situations are when we receive calls from shelters asking our assistance for a dog that is scheduled for euthanasia that very day. The only reason for their unnecessary death is the overcrowded conditions of shelters.
We will work with you to help you decide which dog would be best for your particular situation. You will always be able to rely on our counselors for advice. The comment we hear most often is that it would be too hard to foster and then let the dog go. The reward you'll get from helping these dogs find wonderful homes is well worth the price of letting go. Most of us in rescue do it because of a special dog we've known, one that has touched our hearts and lives. Once a dog has touched your heart, its impossible not to help another who's life has been treated like an afterthought, left deserted, uncared for and scared at a high kill shelter.
The three different kinds of foster homes we desperately need at our rescue:
Critical Care, Short-term, and Customary Foster homes.
A customary foster home accepts a dog until the dog is adopted. This allows us to open up more room at the rescue for other German Shepherds faced with death. In other words, our Customary fosters are a real life-saver!
A short-term foster home is a few days of retreat for our dogs. Most especially during holidays
when our boarding facilities need space for customers, we are asked to move our dogs temporarily until such
time that the holiday period is over.
A short-term foster home is ideal for people that are not quite ready to have a full-time dog of their own,
yet would love to give their full attention to dogs when they have time, as an example when they have time
off from work.
A critical care foster home is needed when we feel that a dog has undergone extensive or invasive surgery where he/she will need extra TLC, a quiet environment to recuperate as well as administering medication.
Our dogs are mostly located in the Orange County area. If you can help us by fostering a German Shepherd please fill out our foster application below.
Foster Home Process & Application
Fostering a Rescue dog is one of the most rewarding things you can do. These dogs often are pulled from the shelters when they are on the euthanasia list so we are their last hope. Seeing a dog's demeanor change once they realize they are safe is emotionally uplifting. Helping these dogs find hope and knowing they are loved is a priceless gift you can give. All that is required is opening your heart and home to one of our orphans. It is a gift that definitely keeps on giving.
The dogs we rescue range in age from puppies to seniors, with the majority in the 2-5 year old range. They come in every traditional color, black & tan, sable, bi-color, black or white. The dogs are usually neutered or spayed before we place them in foster homes. If they haven't been, we usually see that it happens soon after going into their foster home, unless there is a medical reason for waiting.
The dogs we rescue come from local animal shelters (as strays or owner turn ins) or have been turned over to us by their owners. The shelter dogs are usually living on borrowed time so dogs are pulled quickly due to medical problems or their time has run out and they are on the euthanasia list. Once a Rescue dog is evaluated and approved by Coastal GSR, the dog goes into boarding if a foster home is not available. For dogs coming out of a shelter, this can be a stressful time. We cannot stress how important foster homes are for these dogs!
Coastal representatives evaluate the dogs before they are accepted into our program. We try to get as much information as we can about the dog's history, but usually we learn more about the dogs once they are under our care. We try to screen the dogs as carefully as we can and do not take in dogs that have been known to shown aggression to humans or that show aggression towards the evaluators. This is not a guarantee that nothing bad could ever happen, as we are dealing with living creatures, but it helps to screen out obvious temperament problems.
We work with you to determine what general type of dog will adapt to your household for a successful fostering experience for both our dogs and your family. We have a strong support system for our foster families before and after you take the dog home. Some foster families will require more assistance from our volunteers, especially first time fosters. Someone is always available to lend a hand. We are proud of our successful network of volunteers and foster homes, without whom we could not save the number of dogs that we do.
If you enjoy caring for and living with a German Shepherd, fostering a Rescue dog for Coastal may be for you! Just fill out the application below and you will be on your way to the very rewarding experience of saving a life by becoming part of the Rescue Effort!
