National Pet Foster Care Month

Posted By SLCo Animal Services
May 25, 2021

Fostering a shelter pet is helpful for many different reasons! Here at Salt Lake County Animal Services, we see how dogs relax and become the dog they were meant to be while living in a foster home. This helps them get adopted faster.

When you foster a shelter pet it helps us learn so much more about our animals. The shelter can be a scary or overwhelming place for some animals. 

All of our animals come to us as strays so we don’t always know the answers to the questions adopters ask us: Are they house trained, good with other animals or children, what are their weird or quirky behaviors.

Fosters are also able to get better photos and videos of the shelter pet in a home environment, helping adopters see their true personalities. Some animals come to our shelter injured or sick, these animals recover and heal a lot quicker when they are in a foster home.

Kittens and puppies also need foster homes until they are at least 8 weeks old and 2 pounds before they can return to the shelter. These guys do not thrive in a shelter environment.

When you foster for us we can provide you with food, toys, enrichments, vaccinations and all of the medical care. You are required to provide a safe and loving home.

If you are interested in fostering a shelter pet you can email our foster coordinator at Fosters@slco.org. Or visit our Foster Information page for additional details.