If you have some time, energy and love to spare, the Maui Humane Society in Pu‘unēnē offers an opportunity to open your heart and home to foster one of its shelter animals.
Foster pet parents provide temporary care in their home for companion animals when the shelter is full or for those not yet ready for adoption.
By offering a home to one of these animals in need, volunteer parents help prepare them for adoption into a permanent home, and at the same time, create valuable space in the shelter to accommodate other homeless animals.
Dogs, cats, rabbits and guinea pigs may be selected as foster candidates. Those that qualify or the program include very young animals that are often under-socialized and too timid to thrive in shelter. MHS also takes in ill, injured and stressed animals that need additional TLC and a quiet place to recover. Animals may need a foster home for a few days, a few weeks or a few months.
Foster parents are responsible for feeding, cleaning, socializing and cuddling. Some animals may need bottle feeding or medications. Cats and kittens don’t require much space — a laundry room or bathroom is fine, but a cage set up in the corner of a room will work as well. For puppies, a bathroom or crate will usually suffice. It is recommended that larger dogs be kept in a crate while parents sleep or when they leave the house until their home-alone behavior can be assessed.
MHS provides food, veterinary care and other supplies, including carriers, beds, blankets, towels, kennels, toys, collars, leashes, bowls, food or formula, litter, medicines, as well as any other items the furry foster may require.
The Foster Pet Program is perfect for seniors who spend a lot of time at home. It’s a joy to be a foster parent and it’s easy to sign up. The hardest part of the program may be “letting go” as your new friend moves on to a permanent home. Rest assured you have played a significant role in making that happen.
Go to www.mauihumanesociety.org, click on the “Get Involved” tab, then “Volunteer,” then “HS Volunteer Foster Program.”
During the COVID-19 pandemic, prospective parents should click on the “Sign up for the MHS Emergency Foster Network” tab. MHS will contact you when it needs your help.
MAUI HUMANE SOCIETY
Foster Pet Program (501(c) 3 nonprofit)
1350 Mehameha Loop, Puunene, Maui, HI 96784
808-877-3680, x221 | foster@mauihumanesociety.org
www.mauihumanesociety.org
Puppy photo by Maui Humane Society; Kitten photo by Kristen Deblasi
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