(Part 2 )
Our Lil' Bit of Heaven Animal Rescue & Sanctuary Foster procedures and agreement:
I agree to the following procedures (but am not limited to):
What is expected of a foster family for Our Lil' Bit of Heaven Animal Rescue & Sanctuary?
It is critical that a foster family understand what is expected of them and adhere to these expectations:
- Read and adhere to the foster home agreement - It is important for all the adults in the foster family to be in agreement of fostering and agree to the foster guidelines.
- Plan to keep the pet indefinitely - We cannot guarantee how long you will be asked to foster a pet. Sometimes pets are adopted in a week, sometimes it takes many months. Foster families should not enter into fostering with an expectation that a pet will be gone in a certain period of time. The length of time it takes a foster pet to be adopted is often directly related to the amount of energy the foster family puts into training, socializing and networking their adoptable foster.
- Provide a good temporary home for the pet - Provide adequate food, water, shelter, and kind treatment for the animal(s) at all times. Foster families are expected to provide a safe, comfortable and healthy environment for their foster pet. Our foster dogs are to be indoor dogs, fed healthy food, which will be provided to you, given appropriate access to clean water, exercised and socialized in such a way as to create a positive, well tempered dog.
- Work with us for medical treatment of the foster pet - Our Lil' Bit of Heaven will pay for the medical care of the pet during the time it is being fostered, to include routine check-ups, spaying/neutering, vaccinations, microchip insertion, treatment of routine illnesses and treatment of emergencies should they arise. In order to control our expenses, however, the foster family must utilize Our Lil' Bit of Heaven's veterinarian and notify appropriate rescue personnel prior to any medical treatment for the pet to ensure finances and treatment options are appropriately aligned.
- Food and Supplies-Our Lil' Bit of Heaven will supply the foster family with food and supplies during the period of fostering, you as a foster must alert the rescue when these things are getting low so that we are able to get the items needed to you in time. Food and supplies are for the foster/ forever foster only.
- Treat the pet as if they were your own - The foster family is expected to be able to handle routine care and situations with the foster. As a foster, you are to operate within the fostering guidelines set forth by Our Lil' Bit of Heaven, but essentially, while you do not own the foster, you should treat them as if they were your own during the fostering period and you should care for it as such.
- Participate in adoption events-From time to time, there will be events and other activities which promote the adoption of your foster pet. These may include adoption days where pets are brought out for public viewing, displays on websites, fund raisers, etc. Foster families are expected to be available and work with the rescue to have the pet at some of these events. We will work with your schedule and help in any way we can. (Not applicable to Forever Fosters)
- Participate in the adoption process - When Our Lil' Bit of Heaven receives an application on pets in our foster homes, we have a centralized process whereby these are screened. If an applicant is interested in a foster pet and has passed the initial screening, the foster family will be notified and our adoption coordinator will schedule & conduct the appropriate meet and greet and home visits with the potential applicant. Adoptions are handled by Our Lil' Bit of Heaven, if you have a friend, family member, neighbor or acquaintance that may be interested in adopting your foster(s), please direct them to our website www.bitofheaven.org for our adoption process, requirements and adoption application to start the approval process. We will always listen to the foster family’s recommendations if they know the potential family looking to adopt.
- Keep us updated about the foster pet - Foster families are expected to provide updates on the status and progress of the foster pet on a weekly basis. (Forever Fosters are expected to provide updates weekly for the first month and bi-weekly thereafter) Inform us immediately of any health issues or behavior problems. Our Lil' Bit of Heaven reserves the exclusive right to determine the proper course of action to take upon such notification.
- Never hand over the pet without consent - Foster families should NEVER turn over their foster pet to anyone without the prior consent of Our Lil' Bit of Heaven's Director, Joyce Deckard.
- Do not let your foster dog run loose - Foster families should not allow their dog off-leash outside of an enclosed area at any time.
- ID Tags - Foster families should ensure that the dog is wearing their collar with their rabies & microchip tag. Foster families should never replace these tag with one that only has the foster family information on it. You may add a tag with your information.
- Work on basic obedience commands and house manners - Foster dogs will get adopted more quickly and will stay in their new home once adopted if they know some basic commands such as sit, come, down, leave it and stay. While we don't expect fosters to be trainers some dogs do learn quickly.
- Notify us immediately if you would like to adopt your foster pet - Many times a foster family decides they would like to adopt their foster pet and should that be the case we ask that you let us know as soon as you arrive at this decision so we can go through the adoption process with you.
Liability Release and Waiver: I, the undersigned, understand that my participation with Our Lil' Bit of Heaven is strictly on a volunteer foster basis. I understand that there are inherent risks associated with my fostering activities, including the risk of personal injury resulting from animal bites and other animal behavior.
In exchange for Our Lil' Bit of Heaven's agreement allowing me to participate in its fostering program, I hereby release Our Lil' Bit of Heaven including its officers, agents and employees, from any and all claims of liability of any kind whatsoever, including but not limited to claims of negligence and/or injury to myself or, anyone I bring the foster into contact with arising out of my participation in the Our Lil' Bit of Heaven fostering program. I understand that by signing below, I am waiving any and all claims against Our Lil' Bit of Heaven its officers, agents and employees of any kind whatsoever arising from the taking of custody of the animal by Our Lil' Bit of Heaven including but not limited to claims of negligence, veterinary malpractice, conversion, breach of contract and/or personal injury.