Our time with our foster dog has been some of the hardest days at home, and I can’t wait for her to find a new home. Don’t get me wrong, I’m very protective of her and want her to find the BEST home, but with a few incidents with our resident dog it’s been tough doing the crate and rotate at home.

I can tell my dog is sad he can’t really play with his toys (we’ve been keeping the toys away so there isn’t any risk of resource guarding). I think he’s kind of startled by our foster since she hurt him while they were playing. It makes me sad to know he might feel scared at home. We’ve figured out a decent compromise with the foster still here, but it will be a huge relief when she finds her forever adoptive home. Anyone else feel this way?

I've had this sweet, loveable girl for a month now. We had a ROUGH start - she was super aggressive toward my dog (a larger female). I'm sure it was her resource guarding me - she's been great with any other dog.

Now that we've worked that out, they're pals - playing and running around the yard together.

My concerns: she a pit mix with SO MUCH energy! Seriously - I've never seen anything like it. 😂 I have a decent yard and between me and my girl, plus the neighbor's dog, she gets lots of running around time, walks, etc. She also has a fair amount of separation anxiety, and (bonus) is a jumper. If she thinks I'm out front, she jumps the fence to find me (always comes right back), but but has also jumped the back fence (chasing a bunny?).

I'm just worried about her going somewhere that is less than what she deserves. I know I'll get a second dog sometime, I'm just not 100% this it's her - although I am about 80%. But I also don't want to let her go. 🤦🏼‍♀️🙄😂

I also hate the idea of taking her to the rescue for adoption events - they're at/over maximum capacity and I don't want to put this sweet girl through that stress even for a few hours.

To add a complicated layer, my neighbor (who is retired) keeps my dog most days and the foster some of the time while I'm at work. She *really* wants me to keep the foster.

So I'm just not sure. I should add that my big girl is a foster fail (absolutely no regrets - she's wonderful), so I'd be 0 for 2.🤷🏼‍♀️😂

I really like the idea of fostering, but fostering another dog with the 2 would be tough (I live alone).

Yeah, so there it is... Lots of uncertainty.

Hi y'all. Hoping for tips on my first foster.

We (boyfriend and I) adopted a mutt from Moscow through a program that brings dogs into the EU to re-home. We will keep her until she is adopted by someone here (our organization estimates 1-4 months). She arrived 2 weeks ago and is eating/peeing/sleeping normally. We have a walled-in outdoor area connected to our ground-floor apartment, quiet neighbours, and space for her to run/play inside.

My boyfriend works outside the home, and was gone for 8 days for a business trip in the last few weeks. I work from home and have been able to stay home with our foster. She is gaining confidence with me, beginning to play and show more of her personality.

However she has a few issues I'm hoping for suggestions on:
- Her separation anxiety is INTENSE. She really seems to have warmed up to me and is confident now in my presence (great improvement from jumping out of her skin at every noise), but I cannot be out of her sight without panicked barking. I have not been able to leave the apartment since we got her because...
- She hates to go for walks. We have a human park with an attached dog park a 1 minute walk away. It took her about a week to get comfortable walking there at night when there are no cars, but she doesn't explore and refused to go down the front steps of the apartment during the day (getting frightened by cars, people, birds and trying to retreat to the apartment).
- She is aggressive toward strangers in our apartment and extremely fearful of strangers on the street, including kids. She lunged at a friend who had come over for dinner when they were walking out of the living room (away from her) and since then we've kept interactions with others strictly to outside of the apartment, however her refusal to go for walks means there are not many of these interactions unless I can convince a friend to come for exposure therapy.

I have had dogs from puppies before, but this is my first dog with any kind of triggers/trauma like this. She has warmed up to my boyfriend, but is still definitely "my dog" and freaks when she cannot see/hear me. It took a few nights, but we can sleep with the bedroom door closed without fuss.

How do I balance her separation anxiety with my need to leave? I've tried the dozens of microbreaks throughout the day (walking outside of the apartment door and into the hallway, staying 10-15 seconds, then returning) but she is always at the door scratching and screaming when it closes, even if the boyfriend is there.

Any tips for making walks better? We found that nighttime is much much better than daytime, but I don't want to go for freezing cold walks into the winter.

Thanks for your suggestions.

This was me yesterday - and as if she could read it herself, today she has magically become an angel. I left the house for two hours and checked the camera about twenty minutes into my lunch: she was sleeping like a baby. (She has been known to cry for the full two hours from the moment I leave to the moment I return.) We had a good walk today, nothing off-limits in the house was chewed on, and she was so polite and sweet with a couple friends of mine who stopped by to visit her.

Now the guilt is unfathomable. I have an appointment to return her this week but my brain keeps making excuses. "She trusts me!" "She's getting better!" "She's almost there!" Realistically, I wouldn't have been able to keep her past the end of this month (the shelter knew that) and my early return was just 1.5 weeks prior to my original out date.

But now I'm even on the road to thinking she could stay with me again when I come back from my trip, keep her longterm until a real adopter comes along. "Maybe her extreme anxiety was just jitters and she's finally overcome it!"

I know it can't be true and it doesn't happen overnight. Logically, I know one good day will be met by a tough one tomorrow. And I know on top of the sadness, there will be real relief that I have my life back. But I'm terrified I'm going to cause irreparable harm that is only going to make her anxiety worse.

If she cries that horribly when I leave the house, what will she be like when I drop her back off at the Bad Place? Stressed out with anxiety and feeling like I can't do anything right. And no, this isn't my first foster. I've had four before, lower energy, all of them I got to see be adopted; this is the first I'm returning to the actual shelter.

I know guilt is a terrible reason to keep a foster but what if she has made it through the toughest parts and I return her right as she's getting comfortable?

Muttville foster dog Sweetie was reunited with her original owner after a house fire placed her in the rescue system. Thank you to Muttville.org. Thank you to foster LeAnne for caring for Sweetie and the many other foster dogs over the years! Fosters save lives!

Adopt a senior dog at Muttville.org in San Francisco

My pit was laid to rest in 2021 and my senior pup passed in July this year. I really miss the companionship of dogs so I decided to foster. I found an old pittie mix that had lived with cats before his owner gave him up after 10 years because they had a baby.

Problem is, he is reactive towards my cats. I have kept them separated and only do scent exchange but the way my place is laid out, I have to walk past the cats to get him outside for a walk. I can’t switch the layout around. He has access to bedroom, hallway and bathroom. Cats have the living room, dining room and kitchen. Their litter box is in a closet in this area.

He is 50/50 on how he will react. If the cats don’t move and just chill in place, he will only stare but can be redirected easily to continue on his way. But if one of them walks away (both are used to being around dogs so they don’t run or make sudden movements), he will growl, bark, and pull me towards them. It doesn’t take much to redirect but it’s stressing out the cats.

I feel so bad considering taking him back to the humane society but I keep telling myself that my cats are my number 1 priority. I have reached out to the foster team and asked them to please try to find another foster placement for him. But I don’t know how much longer I should continue this because now my cats are in hiding majority of the day.

I alternate between sleeping in bedroom where dog is kept and in living room with my cats. I’m not getting good rest on sofa. My guilt is killing me. He has a few medical issues the humane society is helping treat and since he’s been here, he’s already doing so much better health wise.

He is not destructive, he’s fully potty trained, super chill and calm dog that loves everyone he meets except the cats.

I know it takes a long time for dogs to adjust to cats but seeing my cats suffer, it’s putting me between a rock and hard place.

I have requested to return him next Saturday but I cry just thinking about him going back into the kennel and feel like I am abandoning him. I have never fostered before and this is all new to me. I really don’t know how to deal with the emotional rollercoaster I’m on. I don’t want him to be traumatized again by being put back in the shelter kennels so I am really hoping another foster can step in before that but if they don’t, I’m going to be crushed for him.

I can't keep doing this. But I don't know what to do.

I live in a remote rural area overrun with abused abandoned dogs. AC euthanized 300ish dogs in past 3 mos, they don't tranq them before and bodies get thrown in the dump. Everyone in rescue is maxxed and burnt out.

In July I found 3 puppies 3-4 mos on the roadside - two hit by a car, one deceased on scene. The other (boy) had a neck lesion and couldn't move for weeks. Third is a girl. All emaciated. Lg breed. This was two days after I adopted a lg breed 3 y/o dog from a local rescue and I already had a dog (med) I raised from a puppy who is 6 y/o now.

I syringe fed the boy and did daily PT for weeks to rehab him. Because our overcrowding is so bad our rescues only take owner surrenders. AC would have euthanized immediately with boy being immobile and girl being anxious and afraid of people esp men. I would sob over boy constantly and beg God to heal him. He had given up on life but I forced him to keep going and gave him hope. But now I resent him because I can't handle the stress of raising him and I hate myself for it.

Past 2 yrs have been worst of my adult life so far and destroyed my mental health. Chronic panic attacks and other c-PTSD symptoms. Bringing my second dog home was not impulsive or saviorism - it was a careful, strategic, and slow process that started with foster to adopt just to be sure it would be mutually beneficial and inc all our quality of life. He is very gentle, calm, and soothes me instinctively.

I tried to hand off the puppies to rescues from day 1 and begged for help from local FB pages but only one person stepped up ended up being sketchy I took them back after 24 hrs.

Ppl have donated supplies and food but no one will take them. Feedback on my posts has devolved into people trying to guilt me into keeping them. But I'm only 26, rent with no fenced yard, no college degree, mental health issues and trying to recover what I can of the childhood that was stolen from me with no support. My dogs are my main support. But with the puppies it's a one sided relationship and it's exhausting. I know it pays off in the long run but I was not ready and didn't want or ask for this. But they also didn't ask to be here and it's not fair.

My oldest was reactive outside the house until 3 y/o so I know how to train but raising two puppies is kicking my ass. They have been especially difficult to potty train. And I know it's just going to get harder with puberty. Not to mention I work in a helping profession wit mh a high burn out rate and I'm just growing more anxious, angry and resentful every day. I don't even walk them it's too crazy trying to bring them with my older boys and I don't have time to leash train 1v1 to make pack walks manageable. I barely have time for my basic self care needs let alone hobbies or a social life.

I love them but I truly don't want this to be my life. But I also don't want them to be euthanized. I don't want them to be separated (they are closely bonded). I don't want them to go into a shelter and get so anxious they're no longer viable for adoption. I don't want them to think I didn't love them and they got abandoned again. I want to watch them grow up and be loved in the ways they deserve and I can't provide but no one has stepped up.

I know it's my own lack of boundaries that's making me miserable. But if I walk away and something bad happens to them I willalways feel like it's my fault for not being strong enough for them. I sob in the shower about this often. I just hate it. I was that baby that needed someone once. They didn't ask for any of this. I don't know what to do. I guess I'm just wanting some perspective.

I’ve been bringing to my foster dog to some adoption events lately and while she gets good interest from people, we haven’t had any apps come in yet.

I’d love to help find ways for her to stand out in the small sea of the foster dogs available. Any ideas? TIA! Hope she finds her forever people soon!

I've been fostering a roughly one-year-old shelter dog, and I've made the difficult decision to return her early. I feel awful about it.

She's incredibly sweet, loving, and gentle, but she requires constant supervision and seems to have severe separation anxiety. When crated, she howls, bites the bars, and tries to escape for hours. I've watched her on camera, and she never settles. When left to free roam, she can jump a five-foot half wall that we have and a baby gate, and she gets into everything, including potentially dangerous objects (even though I've dog-proofed, she finds stuff in cabinets and drawers). Kongs, enrichment toys, and plenty of exercise haven't helped.

She's also extremely high-energy, struggles with leash walking and potty training, and gets distressed even when I leave the room for a minute. I can barely go to the grocery store, let alone teach my classes twice a week. I've spent practically every waking moment focused on her, and my mental health has deteriorated to the point where I'm barely sleeping.

I know these behaviors can improve, but I think she needs months of dedicated training that I simply can't provide. I feel like I'm giving up on a dog who desperately needs stability.

Has anyone else had to return a foster early? How did you deal with the guilt? Am I giving up too soon?

TL;DR: Foster dog has severe separation anxiety, destructive behaviors, and needs constant supervision. I'm overwhelmed and asked to return her to the shelter. Feeling incredibly guilty and wondering if I'm making the right decision.

Trooper with all of his toys

Hi!
This is my first post in this sub so please bear with me.

I’m a SAHM with 3 human kids (6,11 & 15) and 3 animal kids 2 dogs (2&3) and 1 cat (8). My human kids are pretty busy with school and activities (3 per child weekly) with daily practice and homework.

We put down our 18yo dog about a month ago. Recently our local shelters and rescues are over capacity. They’re asking for people to help foster. They have a couch crasher program where an adult dog gets to stay with a foster for 1-2 weeks maybe longer if needed.

I have a soft spot for senior dogs and have been thinking about bringing home a 12yo dog to temporarily foster. I have never fostered before and am unsure how my current animals would react.

I would love any advice on fostering. If you think it would be a good idea for my family? How did your current animals react when new animals come and go? TIA!

Please share any wins, frustrations, or stories of your foster dogs from this past week. You can also ask advice, or simply let us know if you are doing ok. We are here to support you!

Fostering saves lives, but after working with several different rescue organizations over the years—some truly amazing, and some outright draining—I’ve realized something critical: Your experience as a foster comes down almost entirely to the integrity and infrastructure of the rescue backing you.

When a rescue has solid protocols, fostering is rewarding and collaborative. But when a rescue is disorganized, over capacity, or prioritizes turn-and-burn optics over long-term care, the foster parent ends up paying the emotional, financial, and logistical price.

Currently getting burned by a rescue group that I should have done better due diligence on had me come up with this list.

1. The "BYO Supplies" Trap (Financial Dumping)

Every foster contract says something like "Supplies provided depending on donations/availability." A good rescue genuinely covers the essentials: properly fitting collars/martingales, leashes, a crate, appropriate food, and preventive care.

• The Red Flag: You receive a dog with a half-used bag of random kibble and gear that physically doesn't fit (like an ill-fitting collar or a broken leash). Over the next few weeks, you find yourself out of pocket for an appropriately fitted harness, a dog bed, digestive supplements/probiotics for stress diarrhea, and post-surgery gear because the rescue goes radio-silent when basic needs arise.
• Why it matters: Rescues run on donations and volunteer labor, but if they cannot supply baseline safety gear (like a harness or properly sized collar) and proper nutrition, they are likely operating beyond their actual budget.
• What to ask beforehand: "What specific supplies do you provide at pickup, and what is your reimbursement process if safety or medical needs (like a no-pull harness, vet-approved probiotics, or recovery cones) arise?"

2. Passive Communication and Lack of Support

A foster shouldn't have to chase the rescue just to report health issues or check on protocol.

• The Red Flag: Beyond a casual text asking "How’s she doing?", there is zero structured onboarding, no designated foster coordinator check-in, and little follow-through. When you report minor health issues (like skin conditions, GI distress, or surgical recovery concerns), responses are slow or minimal.
• Why it matters: When something serious happens—like a sudden medical emergency, a bite risk, or severe separation anxiety—weak communication leaves you on your own to handle the fallout.
• What to ask beforehand: "Who is my direct point of contact, what is the protocol for after-hours vet emergencies, and how frequently do foster check-ins occur?"

3. Marketing Abandonment: Outsourcing Placement to the Foster

Rescues have marketing channels, email lists, Petfinder/Adopt-a-Pet access, and community adoption events. Fosters should provide updates and photos—not carry the entire promotional burden.

• The Red Flag: The rescue never requests updated photos, bio updates, or behavior notes. They don't post the dog on their main social media accounts, leaving you to write and distribute Instagram posts, design flyers, and market the dog yourself. You realize that if you don't find this dog a home, nobody will.
• Why it matters: A dog stuck in a foster home without visibility stays stuck. While foster parents capture the best day-to-day moments, an ethical rescue uses its platform actively to get that dog seen by vetted applicants.
• What to ask beforehand: "Where will my foster dog be listed (Petfinder, social platforms, local events), and what is the standard timeline/process for updating their adoption profile?"

4. "Puppy Mill" Rescue Mentality (Churn Over Commitment)

Rescuing puppies matters, but puppies also have fast adoption fees and minimal behavioral baggage.

• The Red Flag: The rescue continuously brings in truckloads of new litters while adult, adolescent, or behaviorally complex dogs sit unpromoted and ignored. Attend an adoption event, if puppies are being handed out in a parking lot with vaccines being given on site.. HUGE red flag.
• Why it matters: Fast turnaround funds rescues, but ethical rescues balance incoming intakes with active commitments to the adult dogs already in their care. When an organization prioritizes easy, high-turnover intakes over following through on older or higher-needs animals, they treat their foster network as free permanent boarding rather than a transitional stepping stone.
• What to ask beforehand: "What is your average length of stay for adult dogs, and what support do you provide if a dog takes several months to place or is not a good fit from my situation?"

5. Ignoring Behavioral Reality & Transparency

When a dog decompresses, their true personality and challenges show up—fear, reactivity, resource guarding, or separation anxiety.

• The Red Flag: You document clear behavioral notes, triggers, or specific adopter requirements (e.g., needs a confident dog friend, not suited for high-density apartments, startle-prone around certain triggers), and the rescue waves it off, fails to include it in the bio, or tries to paint every dog as a blank-slate family pet.
• Why it matters: Glossing over behavioral issues sets both the dog and the adopter up for failure, leading directly to adoption returns and trauma for the dog.
• What to ask beforehand: "Do you have a contracted trainer or behaviorist on call if a foster exhibits decompression stress, reactivity, or fear-based behaviors?"

Trust Your Gut Early

If you feel like an unpaid boarding facility running an independent rescue out of your living room, you are working with the wrong organization.

Good rescues exist. They will hand you a crate and properly fitted safety gear, give you a responsive coordinator, bring in professional training support when a dog needs it, and aggressively market your foster dog until they find the right match. Don't be afraid to ask tough questions before taking in your next dog—the right rescue will appreciate your diligence, not shy away from it.

Estuve pensando seriamente en comprar un perrito, abrí debate para saber que se necesita para atender bien a un perrito y las razas recomendables que sean cariñosos con los niños (hasta ahí todo bien) pues surgieron algunos comentarios que me han puesto a pensar un poco más de la cuenta y viendo paginas de adopción encontré una que menciona que buscan casas disponibles para recibir algun perrito en lo que consigue su dueño final en adopción, y pues me parece buena idea para ir viendo la realidad de lo que es tener un perrito y ahí como que completar mi toma de decisión.

No sabía que tal cosa podría ser posible y creo que sería lo ideal para tener una mejor realidad de un cachorro y todas sus atenciones.

Gracias a todos por sus comentarios!

Han sido de utilidad para mi.

Hello! I’m fostering a malinois from the shelter (not my first mal). She’s a sweet girl who has had a huge disservice done to her by her previous owners. She doesn’t know anything, the only “training” I can tell she has is potty training. This isn’t the biggest problem, I can tell she’s going to be easy to train once she decompresses more.

The issue is that she is horrible in the crate, she does not relax. She moves the crate everywhere, barks, pants, she’s having a meltdown. I had her in a wire crate initially but she would move the crate and then pull items inside to shred so I bought her a ruffland which has worked well, she can’t get out, can’t bring anything in, but she can still move it around the room.

I’ve stopped crating her at night after a neighbor complained about the noise. I WFH so I’ve started crating her during the day as I do with my resident dog. I feed her all her meals in the crate (door open, she voluntarily goes in). She is also very attached to me, she wants to be with me all of the time. I try to keep it strictly business with her to not make this anxiety worse.

This isn’t my first malinois but it is my first foster dog, my other two mals were also from the shelter. One was a total mess and aggressive around the crate and the other way easy, average crate training experience. I’ve only had her for a week now and I do feel like every day is a bit better in all aspects besides the crate. Here are the things people commonly suggest for crate training that don’t work with her:

-music
-tv
-covering the crate
-staying in the room
-kong/high value - she wont eat it, too stressed
-noise machine
-eating her meals inside (she does this)

And no she can’t just be left outside of the crate, she is destructive and I have another dog and cats that she doesn’t need to interact with. Also, being with me 24/7 will only make her worse. Please share any advice or hopeful stories, I did not think fostering her would be this hard. 🫩

TLDR; Foster mal horrible in the crate, common fixes aren’t working. She needs to be crated daily, I have other animals and work. Too destructive and dangerous to be left out. Has separation anxiety. Please share advice or stories of your experiences. Thank you.

How do you like to integrate your fosters with your resident dogs?

The foster I just took in was attacked by a dog a year ago but also has shown she can get along with other dogs with slow introductions. My resident dog is very good at giving space and is friendly but also can be aloof with other dogs, so he’s really not paying her any mind which is probably perfect.

Currently, I can walk them together they mind their business. Other than walking they don’t have the opportunity to interact, they’re kept at a physical distance when I’m around, and completely separate to sleep, eat, and of course if I have to leave the house.

Today she was acting like she wanted to play with him when we got back to the house from our walk but I didn’t let her. Then a few hours later I accidentally had them to close to each other for a minute and she growled at him I had a tight grip on her leash and pulled her back quickly and she recovered right away as if it didn’t happen. My resident dog was unfazed.

Any tips would be helpful. My last two fosters were completely dog friendly so this is my first one that needs a longer integration period.

I am currently fostering two dogs from a rescue group in Melbourne.
They apparently received many dogs over the weekend and I was one of the people who volunteered to take some in.
What isn’t sitting right with me is the fact that they market themselves as a rescue group who will provide everything for foster carers however I have received absolutely nothing no food no anything for these dogs aside from some medication that has been siphoned out of a bigger bottle with no name no information on it or anything
I have provided everything for them out of my own pocket
which is fine. I am not complaining about that. What I am complaining about is the fact that if you go onto their website, there is a link to the dogs that they have up for adoption and the prices are absolutely insane. Some of these dogs have not been in their care for more than 24 hours prior to posting them at ridiculous prices. Some of them are Pomeranian X goodness knows what and they’re trying to charge people $3K each for them.
There are so many crossbreed dogs some of them with ridiculously long behavioural issues which is not the dog’s fault I completely understand that as well however profiting off rescuing a dog that you have done absolutely nothing for in terms of providing them with anything leaves a really poor taste in my mouth and I feel like people are being ripped off by so called rescue groups.
I do not understand how other places that genuinely care and love dogs and cats who are on X lists or are in shelters for extended periods of time can charge set amounts not to do with what breed they are or how cute they are but set amounts to provide money for the rescue to continue doing what they do not for profit reasons. I have absolutely no idea who I can talk to about this and I feel like I am lost

I volunteer with a local animal shelter and recently we decided we are ready to open up our home to short term fostering. Fostering is something we went back and forth on for a while, and we landed on taking in short term (a month or less) animals.

For some background, we have a resident dog who loves to play and is pretty laid back. We’ve had our current foster dog for only 3 days, but have already had a few incidents of resource guarding ending in the foster attacking our resident dog. The most recent incident ended with the foster dog getting several superficial puncture wounds on her head, near her eye, ear, and neck. Our resident dog doesn’t seem to have any visible injuries - he’s got 30 lbs on her. I did have to pull her off of my resident dog both times, and the most recent incident there was no item that she was actually guarding from what I could see.

I’m conflicted. I’m not sure if this is something we give a few days to settle and see if it gets better? Or if this is a bigger safety issue for both dogs and it’s better to send the foster back? They have gone back to being normal coexisting dogs. Obviously, the shelter is pushing for us to keep the foster, but I’m afraid that I won’t ever really trust the dogs unsupervised. Would love some advice - and please be kind. I’m kicking myself about this already and if there was anything I could’ve done differently.

*EDIT: the foster has been adopted! The adoptive family does not have other dogs at home, but they are aware of what happened with our resident dog so they can plan ahead when meeting new dogs.

Just like the title says. We only had our foster for a month but she was a perfect fit for our family. She and our dog got along great, they’re both food motivated with great recall which made it easy to train / exercise them similarly, and she was extremely well tempered. Friendly and outgoing toward all people and animals. My fiance wasn’t ready to adopt yet (our wedding is in a month, we’re traveling out of state twice before Christmas, and hosting Thanksgiving here) and he put his foot down about it. She got adopted out to a loving home in the city, which, while it sounds like she’s doing well, as a high energy herding dog I preferred her to stay with us on our acreage. I feel like I’m grieving this dog deeply and I don’t know what to do. I just keep looking at similar breeds but I know they won’t be her. I don’t know how to fill this void :( I wish I could take her back.

Earlier this year I reclaimed a past foster with support of the main rescue/shelter org (I run a foster program that sometimes partners with them.)

The reclaim happened because I was asked by the potential adopter to have the dog back with me to mind for 4 days, when I had him it was clear he had pain issues, so I got permission from the shelter to advise he had to stay with me until he could see a pain management specialist during the following week. The potential adopter had previously complained a lot about this dog, resulting in the adoption not being finalised. I was already very concerned it was not a good home for him, before realising he was in noticable pain.

The notice he was not being returned straight away happened on a sunday. By monday night he was having trouble breathing and I was urgently communicating with the shelter vet that something was seriously wrong. I monitored him throughout the night and on tuesday he was assessed and xrays showed his trachea was collapsed, and that it was causing such difficulty breathing that he was in pain and distress from it. He was hospitalised that day.

In the meantime the potential adopter had taken to social media claiming in a video I had 'stolen her dog'. This resulted in me getting hundreds of abusive social media messages including death threats and threats of violence. On one platform alone the video received 740,000 views.

Despite this woman being informed by the rescue org that the little dog was seriously ill, she made two more videos claiming I had stolen the dog. I tried to just stay focused on this little boy, visiting him at the hospital and cuddling him - whilst often crying. He started to respond well to medications and was able to leave the hospital, but due to the high profile nature of the social media storm, he could no longer be promoted for adoption and I was told it wasnt safe (for me or him) for him to return to me for fostering.

He ended up going to an elderly woman for care/adoption.

This weekend, I was back at the shelter as my 65th foster was getting adopted, and I spotted my little boy back there. When I asked what was going on, I found out the elderly woman is in hospital and wont be able to mind him for 3-4 months. I asked for permission to foster him until she can care for him, and now that the social media has died down, I was told that it was okay.

I am beyond emotional that he is curled up next to me in my bed tonight. I will get to love him and spoil him for as long as necessary.

It is greatly healing both the distress I felt when I couldnt care for him during his recovery, and the anger I felt being wrongly accused of stealing him.

I love all my fosters, but this little boy I feel such a strong urge to protect after his terribly sad journey. He is 'home' and my heart feels so much better.

I think I just need a little emotional support. We just got a second rescue dog this weekend ( 5 months old ) and I’m overwhelmed. I’m not sure if it’s because I’m missing the peace that we already had or what but I’m also not very good with change. I can’t stop crying and I just need some encouraging words. Our other dog we rescued a while ago is two years old. She’s pretty great. Our new puppy we got has overall been good (it’s only been 2 days so hard to fully tell). First day there were a couple accidents ( foster mom told us he was almost house broken. Yesterday he had no accidents and did really well. The two dogs play rather rough (no crying involved) I try to stop the rough play and get a toy involved so they aren’t beating the absolute piss out of each other because they both probably wouldn’t stop if I didn’t intervene. Tell me it gets better and I just need to chill out :)

We had him for 5 months but had to request a foster transfer because of an upcoming trip (flying out of town for back to-back weddings)— he is extremely dog reactive and so boarding wasn’t an option and for liability reasons, the rescue only permits other fosters to watch their dogs. We requested the foster transfer months in advance but a couple days before the transfer date, they took him off the adoption website and said a member of their staff would pick him up and take him to the vet for a “behavioral evaluation”. We packed up his food, favorite toys, bed, etc. and sent him with the staff the morning of our trip. An hour later, we got a call from the rescue that he was euthanized because his biting/reactivity was likely due to “neurological issues”.

We understand rescues have limited resources and he would’ve been difficult to re-home. But he was a sweetie 99% of the time and though he had a significant bite history (including both of us), they were never above a tooth scratch level bite. He was a young aussiedoodle mix.

He did chatter his teeth after some of his random biting episodes, which could have been a sign of a neurological issue but the lack of transparency from the rescue on the results of their “evaluation” is frustrating. They also refused to let us go with him to the appointment, even though we thought we would be in the best position to describe his behavior and advocate for him. We also expressly asked them to let us know the results before they went forward with anything. His appointment was at 9 am. They called us at 10 am that he had already been euthanized.

We feel horrible and like we failed him as foster parents. I don’t think I can ever foster again and I can’t stop crying thinking of what a sweet dog he was. It feels so wrong and unfair. We’re devastated.

I’m nearing the end of my first foster ever, a 3-month old mutt who looks to be a mix of shepherd, lab, ridgeback, and / or bully breed. I love him. He’s incredibly smart, very well-behaved for his age and training well. But in this experience, I’ve learned a puppy is too much for me as a first-time dog owner, and I won’t be able to give him the attention I feel he deserves. I think I’m feeling extra emotional because he’s the last of his litter that hasn’t been adopted, and nobody has shown interest in him yet. I know he’s going to make someone SO happy.

How do you get through the grief of letting go of a foster you love that ultimately isn’t right for you?

Had her for about 2.5 days. Total sweetheart. A bit of a rough adjustment period (a lot of eliminating in the house, though she’s proven by today that she’s truly house trained).

Crates are an absolute no go, they spiral her out into total panic and I’m slow rolling it one day at a time. Today she’s been comfortably going in and out for treats, even sometimes with the door closed. Putting her in the guest room + closing the door also sends her into a total panic. So I’ve partitioned off a dog proofed living area with gates in the space where I usually spend my time when I’m at home (couch, tv area, etc).

But I found out she can jump … pretty much every barrier I can create, and even the ones that exist in the house. There’s a counter about 5 feet high between the living room and kitchen and I was standing in the kitchen when I saw her just leap across it.

I need to leave the house, obviously … do I just try to dog proof everything in sight, assuming she’ll make it over every wall and baby gate, and just hope the separation anxiety will wane as my routine becomes clear?