Foster Carers are gold to us and we can always do with more.
ARF is always looking for more loving ‘temporary homes’ for dogs and foster caring can be an extremely rewarding experience. In fact, most foster carers find an extra ‘tail’ in the house comes with a range of benefits. Not least the feeling that you have saved a dog who might otherwise have been euthanised.
ARF’s objective is to foster a dog for as long as it takes for a new permanent home to be found. Some dogs are adopted in a couple of weeks, others take many months, and some are so gorgeous that the carers fall in love with them and adopt them themselves. In fact, the most common question we are asked by new foster carers is ‘how can I let them go?’
By letting your foster go to a fabulous forever home you are freeing up a space for another needy pound dog. Of course, at times it can be hard as you grow attached but when you see them happy in their new home it makes it all worthwhile.
Foster caring is a rewarding and wonderful thing to do but it can also be challenging. By becoming a foster carer, you are truly making a difference.
ARF has a very good mentoring system for new foster carers and our mentors can offer sound advice when problems do occur. We also have experienced foster carers and trainers who are always happy to help with any issues you may be having. Please note that we can only accept foster carers from the Canberra/Queanbeyan/Yass region.
We do have some criteria a new foster carer must meet –
- Have owned a dog as an adult
- Have an interest in animal behaviour
- Ability and willingness to train your foster dog. Most foster dogs have limited training and often have some behavioural issues
- Suitable yard and secure fencing. We expect dogs to be allowed inside and be part of the family.
- Ability to create a separation area (if there are multiple dogs)
- Able to attend our ARF training sessions throughout the year on a variety of dog and fostering specific subjects. We expect carers to attend at least two of these per year.
- Have any other animals in your care vaccinated and desexed
- If renting or a Body Corporate, have a dog permission letter from your landlord or Committee.
- Have your own vehicle
- Have a LOT of love to give!
Different dogs come into care with a wide variety of needs and requirements. So because of this we have a Perfect Match rating system of Gold, Silver and Bronze. We use this system to work out what rating you would be as a foster carer and we also rate the dogs based on their behaviours observed during temperament testing, this way we ensure that you are suitably matched with the right dog for your household. We must point out however, that most dogs are in the silver category.
Things to consider
- Time required to rehome the dog including training, responding to enquiries, etc.
- Impact on your household – children and pets.
- ARF receive a lot of generous donations and vet costs are covered by ARF.
- Type of dogs you are interested in fostering. ARF most frequently get medium sized dogs, often staffies, bull arabs and working breeds. We do also get other breed mixes and occasionally small dogs but these are the minority.
If you are interested please fill in the foster application form here
Different dogs come into care with a wide variety of needs and requirements. So because of this we have a Perfect Match rating system Gold, Silver and Bronze.
We use this system to work out what rating you would be as a foster carer and we also rate the dogs based on their behaviours observed during temperament testing, this way we ensure that you are suitably matched with the right dog for your household.
ARF has a very good mentoring system for new foster carers and our mentors can offer sound advice when problems do occur. We also have experienced foster carers who are always happy to help with any issues you may be having. Please note that we can only accept foster carers from the Canberra/Queanbeyan/Yass region.
ARF also offers training and information sessions throughout the year which are informative and also a great way to meet other foster carers and talk about your experiences.
If you are interested in becoming a foster carer please fill in the foster application form here