You can apply to be a foster parent by filling out the Foster Application online.
No. SPCR will provide and pay for the animal’s veterinary care and medications, as provided by a SPCR veterinarian. The SPCR can also loan litter boxes, food/water bowls, cat bed, cat carriers and cage if needed. The foster parent is expected to purchase food and litter for the foster pet, unless the pet is on a prescription diet or unless purchasing the items would create a hardship.7
There are many variables when fostering; a cat could be in your home for one week or two months. If you are only willing or able to foster for a couple of weeks, this program probably isn’t for you. Please carefully consider the commitment and be sure all family members understand what this program entails.
If you are fostering a cat or kittens, we ask that they be kept separate from your pets. A spare room is the best way to accomplish this.
Please make arrangements for your foster animal to be cared for by a responsible pet sitter.
No – all cats available for adoptions are posted on our website with a photo/video and brief description. We receive applications for the cats through our website. Our screening process includes a written application, and a phone interview. If approved, adopters are given foster home contact information.
- Provide a clean nurturing, indoor home for the cat, pending adoption.
- Bring the animal to an SPCR approved veterinarian for exams, vaccinations and other routine treatment.
- Give medication as needed. We teach the inexperienced!
- SPCR has a spay/neuter before adoption policy, meaning that we spay/neuter all of our animals before they are adopted.
- For adult cats, many of whom are spayed/neutered almost immediately upon entering our system, they are ready for adoption after they have recovered from surgery and have received any needed medical treatment.
- For young kittens, this policy means that the commitment to foster can be longer. Kittens are usually spayed/neutered around 12-14 weeks.
Foster caregivers are volunteers who take SPCR cats into their homes and care for them until they are ready for adoption. It’s a great way to volunteer from home. Since we do not operate a shelter, all of the animals we accept into our organization must be fostered. Animals that come into our organization include:
- Pregnant moms or moms with kittens.
- Kittens old enough to be eating on their own.
- Kittens/cats that need socialization because they are very shy, have never been around people, or have been abused or neglected.
- “Senior” cats (whose owner has recently passed away).
- Cats with special medical needs.
- Cats with perceived behavioral problems.
- Cats with no issues at all; they simply need a temporary home until they are adopted.
While some volunteers end up adopting a foster pet, please note that the foster program is not for people who want to “try out” an animal prior to adoption. It is intended to provide one-on-one attention in a home environment for animals, in order to best evaluate them and prepare them for adoption. A home visit is required prior to receiving any foster.
We are in NEED of EXPERIENCED FOSTER HOMES in Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana, eastern Iowa, eastern Minnesota and southern Michigan. If you have a spare room and would like to make a real difference in the lives of cats like any you see on our website, please read through this page and take the first step toward becoming a foster.