Me too woman , me too . When I retire , if healthy and in right mind , I am gonna get every few months whatever old dogs from shelter that can’t get rid off . That’s the plan ! Even if they last few months , at least best last months

@Pralina1 A beautiful thing to do. The older dogs are the ones that suffer the worst. I fostered many older dogs whose families just dumped them at the animal shelter due to health issues or just didn’t want them anymore! It always made me so angry that someone would do that!

@Redheadedgammy Same . Man . Humans , we are assholes .

@Pralina1 Mostly yes, although there are those bright lights of humanity that I wish there were more of! You being one of those bright lights!!

Someone posted a shelter sign in the area that said because they're so over-run with senior dogs (presumably ones who are making room for Christmas puppies), that all new dogs would be immediately euthanized upon drop off. It makes me ill to even write this. What kind of person still drops off their dog knowing that???

@Lauren More than anyone realizes unfortunately. And they are so scared and confused. It’s heartbreaking to see them. The group I worked with here in Texas made it possible for quite a few older dogs to be pulled from the shelter, got them the medical care they needed, and they were so changed by just being loved and cared for. I fostered 6 older dogs during my time with the group. All but one made it on to a good family that loved them. That one passed away in my lap. At least she felt loved when she went.. 🥲

@Redheadedgammy You have such a good heart! My sister fosters "unplace-able" Chihuahua's, so I appreciate what a huge commitment of time and emotion that it entails.

It must have been emotionally draining work, but how rewarding - particularly as they all ended up with happy endings. I think that even applies to the one who died. It's wonderful to know she didn't die alone, frightened and unloved. Thank you for that.

@Lauren They are so worth our time and energy! All of my fosters brought me so much love, joy and companionship. Your sister is a wonderful person too. When you see them leave with their new families it can be emotional, but also good because you know you helped change their life for the better, and the new family gets a devoted new family member. Dogs are so grateful when you save them. They know they got a second chance!!

@Redheadedgammy I don't know that she could do it if she didn't already have her dog, which eases the loss each time a foster moves on to their new family. But she grieves for them nonetheless. I don't know if it was like that for you, but I imagine it takes a lot of strength to take on love knowing you'll go through losing it. I guess that applies to all kinds of love.

@Lauren I can’t

@Lauren, @Redheadedgammy I love u guys

@Pralina1 & @Redheadedgammy

Awwww, lovin' you back bunches!

@Lauren, @Redheadedgammy Marcello was rescued from a illegal gambling house . They were starving him and have him race for his food . Diego boy was placed in a box after found roaming in the cold , and left out of my vets door . He had pneumonia and was about to die . They named him blue bcz he was blue bcz of luck of oxygen . He was someone’s xmas pet for sure , then they realized that his tinny bladder can’t hold , and that he walks and drips . I have mr Marcello for 9 yrs now , and Diego for 6. Diego has pee on everything , and that’s y pads are made in life ? Who the f cares .
I took carpet out from upstairs , wood floors , problem solved . I fear the day that I will lose them , and mr Marcello and I we are like salt and pepper . He is my best friend , and my friend is old

@Lauren Believe me, the first few I fostered stole my heart, and I cried when they went to their new families because you do get attached to each one. But, I was also a foster fail once too. My Lizzie girl was surrendered from a family where the husband abused her. My husband was still alive then and Lizzie was so afraid men due to that man hurting her, but Richard was patient and didn’t push I himself on her and she became his little friend. He was the one that said, why don’t we keep her. I’m so glad because she’s been the best dog. Here is her picture!

@Lauren, @Pralina1 Ditto. When I meet “dog” people, I know they are my kind of people!!

@Redheadedgammy I would have a difficult time fostering as I would fall in love with all of them. Parting with them would be a very painful experience for me.

@Pralina1 No one can love as hard as someone who was broken, and those poor babies were so broken! They are so, SO lucky to have you! ❤️❤️❤️ Mr Marcello may be old, but he's in love with you, so just keep holding tight to the time you have together, and keep facing life as tenaciously as you have been.

@Redheadedgammy Lizzy is so beautiful! And I'm glad your husband was able to break through to her. Right now I'm like @Sticks48... I don't think I would be strong enough to foster. I guess I could become the crazy dog lady, but maybe next year I'll feel up to it.

Or maybe I could become a vigilante who h goes after people who do things like starve their dogs and abandon them in the cold.

@Sticks48 It is so hard at first, but as time goes on and you see how what you’re doing is getting more of them out of shelters or bad homes, you actually learn to love it even more because once you place that sweet dog in a good home, you can do it all over again to save another one. And like me, you can once in a while be a foster fail and have a best friend for life too.

@Lauren Being a foster is so rewarding and helpful because there are so many dogs in shelters or in crappy homes. A foster actually helps the problem of over population of dogs, because the groups who do this work do everything to make the dogs a success. They get them spayed or Neutered, treat any issues like heart worms or surgery they may need, help them get socialized so that they can be a part of a family. A good rescue group will also make sure the dog is going into a good situation for them. Mine would take applications and do home visits to make sure the home was safe and secure. We also had a policy of no dog being kept outside and would take them back, no questions asked if things didn’t work out.

@Lauren There are so many things you can do to help dogs in terrible situations. I always carry dog food/cat food and water in the trunk of my car because you never know when an opportunity to help a dog can happen in your life. It’s hard not to judge when you see a dog tied up on a chain, looking skinny and sick, so it’s good to have that food with you to give to the dog and start a conversation with the owner. Sometimes they do love their dog but need education on the real needs of their pet. Sometimes they need help with food or medication they can’t afford . That is how Lizzie came to my group. One lady in the group was alerted to Lizzie’s situation and one of our members went over and just started a conversation with the woman, and kept going back several times until she convinced her to surrender Lizzie to our group.

@Redheadedgammy Working with a good, legitimate agency would be important. One that has the dog's happiness as their main concern, and not just placing them somewhere.

I noticed an ad on Facebook for a group that was looking for fosters for over the Christmas holiday, I think it was to take overflow from the shelters. I'll have to go check them out and see if it's a good starting point.

@Redheadedgammy I'm glad it turned out so well with Lizzy's owner. I hear a fair number of people who grew up with outdoor dogs and their attitude about a good life for the dog isn't the same as mine, and they can be defensive. They love their dogs, but haven't made the leap to respecting them with compassionate care. So Lizzy's personality just clicked with you and Richard?

@Lauren Yes, do your homework. There are many groups that want to help but don’t realize how much time, money and people it takes. My group was started by a woman who self funded in the beginning because she could afford it. We later started doing fundraisers and of course started asking for donations. We also had adoption fees that help a great deal too. The group provided the money for medical care, and food. Some of us fosters had our own pets and went ahead and just bought a little extra food for the foster ourselves to save the group money for the Spaying and neutering. You just help where you can and it works for the dogs.

@Lauren You will run into people who think the dog must be outside. You can try talking with them about the needs of dogs, but some won’t budge. Those are the ones that we would help with a good outside dog house, so the dog has good warm shelter at least. You have to build up trust with those people, and can never try to shame them because they will dig in their heels after that and you won’t be any help to the dog. Lizzie trusted me immediately because the woman who owned her did love her and tried to keep her husband from hurting her. She trusted women but not men. Her personality is so sweet and she did respond to affection really well from me but her tail would be tucked if Richard tried to pet her. It took about a month of Richard and I walking her together before she warmed up to Richard, and I believe it was the walks that finally made the difference. Dogs love routine so the walks were her fun time every day and she associated that time with Richard as being a good thing.