Why Foster Parent?

The key to a healthy heart is to have many things to love. OK diet and exercise help too but I'm not as good at those things. If you love baby animals, surrounding yourself with them can be like heaven on Earth. It can also be a huge burden of responsibility and the smell is not too heavenly. I started this blog to encourage people to call their local shelters and volunteer for the foster program. While I applaud anyone who becomes a foster parent, I also applaud anyone with the presence of mind to take a good look at what is involved and decide that it's not for them. You are still welcome to come here!
The way I see it is that I get to have these adorable little bundles in my home and it's just a treat. They leave before they're big enough to destroy the furniture; we get them at their cutest! We can also get them at their scariest! Be sure to let the shelter know what age you are comfortable with. I have a friend who took in a litter that was only three days old. They still had the stumps of their umbilical chords on their tummies! These teeny tiny babies don't even have their eyes open and it will be a while before they respond to "love". They are just a collection of neurons snapping and they are feeling traumatized at the loss of their mother. This is like a human baby in that they need care around the clock. You will be setting alarms so you can feed them in the night and unlike a human baby, this is a litter. You may have six mouths to feed every two hours! You will be trained by your shelter before being placed on the foster parent list. If you feel overwhelmed at the end of the training session, BE HONEST! Let them know your limitations! Some times they have litters that are completely weaned but just a bit too young and not socialized. I had a litter like that. They just needed to learn how to get along with people. These kids were even litter trained! What fun, I only had to provide kitten chow and love. Be honest with yourself and the shelter about how young you can handle and how many. I won't take more than five bottle feeders and I've been very lucky in getting litters of only three. Really, three is about all I can handle with bottle feeders. "Lap" becomes a magical word! When you can put a saucer of formula on the ground and have them feed themselves, it's time to break open a bottle of champagne (although by then you may need a good strong jug of moonshine)
The biggest pitfall is saying "good bye" and this is what has most people saying "I could never do it. I'd adopt them all." One thing that helps me is to take a spiritual approach to being able to love without owning. Something does not have to be mine for me to love it. But the biggest help is to have more than one litter so that there are still babies to come home to after you drop off a litter. During kitten season, I rarely come home from the shelter with an empty carrier. The end of kitten season is sad when you come home to an "empty nest" but mine is never empty as I have my pets. My pets who have so generously shared me now have me back to themselves and THEY are very happy. I try to focus on their happiness instead of my loss.
YOU WILL FALL IN LOVE!
You are supposed to. You are teaching them how to love you, that's a two way street. It can be heart breaking. The worst is when you lose one. Don't kid yourself, it will happen. No matter how well you do things, sometimes they arrive in this world with something wrong with them that doesn't show up until they are in your arms, dying and all your love won‘t make them well. Sometimes they catch something and it may be partially your fault. Sometimes the shelter vet will tell you that a sick kitten is a lost cause and that you must euthanize this one to save the rest of the litter. The lofty dream of being able to save that one sickly little thing is the stuff that Disney movies are made of. In reality you may kill a whole household. Miracles can happen but don't subject other lives to wishful thinking.
All that being said, the joys FAR outweigh the sadness. I can only speak for my own experience but it’s one of the funnest things I’ve ever done and I’ve done a lot of fun stuff. The winter months seem extra cold without the pitter patter of tiny feet; little pads as soft as babies' lips and the chorus of purrs that engulfs me when I lay down on the floor. I am eagerly awaiting kitten season. It should be just around the corner...
Hi my name is Susan, I'm a kitten addict.