Follow the steps below and you’ll be fostering kittens before you know it!
Become a Cat or Kitten Foster
Thank you for considering fostering animals in need! You’re about to become a part of the amazing cycle of rescuing, fostering, and adopting.
Start by finding out what your local shelters and rescue organizations are. From humane societies to rescue organizations, most of them are always in need of more foster homes. Check out their websites or give them a call to find out how to apply, attend a fostering orientation, and to learn about their background check process.
Please also make sure that everyone in your home is on board (resident pets included)! Not everyone needs to be directly involved in fostering, but you need to be confident that fostering will not negatively impact any of your loved ones. In my situation, I always evaluate the needs of my resident pets before I bring in another group of fosters. If there are suddenly high anxiety levels or any health concerns, I know that two of my fur babies would feel even worse with the positive and negative types of stress that comes with having new animals in our home.
Once you’ve picked a place and have filled out any necessary paperwork, it’s time to dedicate a space to your future fosters! The organization may have guidance you’ll need to follow, or you can read about a simple setup in The Ultimate Guide to Setting Up Your Kitten Room. In some cases, a home check may be required before you pick up your first group of foster kittens, but this is usually just to confirm that you have everything you need.
Find Time in Your Daily Routine
When you become a cat or kitten foster, you’re committing to taking time out of your day to give your fosters plenty of care and attention. Think about two times in your routine (at the very least) that you plan to spend feeding, cleaning, and playing with the kittens.
It can be helpful to consider a certain age group or population to get you started. The younger the kittens are, the more time you’ll be required to spend with them. For instance, I typically foster kittens who are at least 6 weeks old. I work full-time in a neighboring town, so I knew my schedule was going to be somewhat limited when it came to fostering. This is an age group that I know I can commit a couple hours to each day.
If you have the time in your schedule to take a 5-10 minute break every couple hours or so, please consider fostering neonatal kittens! This age group is in such high need of foster homes, because they require such frequent care that shelters are rarely able to provide on-site. Check out kittenlady.org to learn how easy it can be.
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Any contribution is greatly appreciated!
– $6.00 allows us to buy a bag of litter
– $25 helps us buy 12 cans of cat food
– $100+ allows us to fund general medical procedures for any felines that we foster on our own
Thank you so much for considering a donation! 🙂
Any contribution is greatly appreciated!
– $6.00 allows us to buy a bag of litter
– $25 helps us buy 12 cans of cat food
– $100+ allows us to fund general medical procedures for any felines that we foster on our own
Thank you so much for considering a donation! 🙂
Any contribution is greatly appreciated!
– $6.00 allows us to buy a bag of litter
– $25 helps us buy 12 cans of cat food
– $100+ allows us to fund general medical procedures for any felines that we foster on our own
Thank you so much for considering a donation! 🙂
Set Up Your Foster Room
Ask your organization if they will be able to provide any supplies. Most of them are able to provide the essentials such as food, litter, and medications. If they’re unable to provide supplies beyond the essentials, here are two lists of items to get you started. I recommend starting with the necessary supplies first, and please look around your home to see what you have on hand before you start shopping. You might be surprised that items you already have will serve the intended purpose. For example, when I first started fostering, I used small dinner plates as food and water dishes.
Necessary supplies to consider:
- Scale that measures in grams and pounds
- Litter box and scoop
- Toys (or make your own!)
- Food and water dishes
- Something soft, such as blankets or towels.
- Scratchers
Extras to consider:
- Play pen
- Mini fridge for medications and food
- Litter genie
- Unscented baby wipes
- Disposable gloves
- Snuggle Safe
- Snuggle Kitty
Pick Up Your First Foster Kittens!
Stay in touch with the organization and make yourself available. Depending on the organization, you might need to check your email or their website consistently for kittens in need of foster homes. Once you commit to fostering a kitten, it’s time to bring them to your foster room and begin the amazing work that foster homes are a part of.
Other Committments
Be prepared to schedule appointments like vet checkups, vaccinations, and spay/neuter surgeries and to transport the kittens to and from these appointments. You’ll also need to monitor the kitten’s overall health and reach out to a vet if concerns arise between appointments.
You’ll also want to take lots of pictures of the kittens as they go through their fostering journey with you. When the time comes, get ready to set up meet-and-greets with potential adopters or to sign your fosters up for local adoption events. Follow whatever your organization’s guidelines are, and remember that when you finally say goodbye, you’ll get to say hello to new fosters!
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Exploring animal welfare one foster kitten at a time
The Kitten Koop 
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