Be a Hero - Foster today
Our foster program helps save lives by allowing us to provide specialized care for dogs and cats of all ages and conditions. Since it first began, our foster program has grown to provide alternative outlets and life-saving strategies for old, sick, injured, underweight, and behaviorally challenged dogs and cats. Each of our different foster opportunities (listed below) has been developed to help MCACC save even more lives.
Whether it’s taking an otherwise overlooked pet and personally finding them an adopter, getting a sick pet healthy enough to be adopted, or caring for underage or underweight animals during their early stages of life until they are old enough for adoption, our foster parents provide compassionate care for a variety of dogs and cats.
Current Needs
We are always looking for homes for our larger dogs (over 30 pounds). In the spring and early summer months, we are in need of foster families willing to feed orphaned bottle baby puppies and kittens as well as whelping mommas. Our foster opportunities for small dogs, highly adoptable dogs, and high-interest dogs are extremely limited as these animals are often adopted quickly from our shelter without the additional information or assistance needed for placement.
Easy, Fast Foster Application!
To become a foster parent, review our available opportunities below for one that will best fit your schedule and abilities! Our Foster Handbook has even more information about our program and foster parent requirements.
If you feel you are able to meet the requirements and needs of our Foster Program, fill out our easy, online application so that we can learn about you, your home, and your availability. Once submitted, you'll receive an automated email with a link to a video. After reviewing the video, you'll be asked to take a quick foster knowledge quiz (linked from video) and then we will contact you with the next steps.
Our Day Fosters have the shortest time commitment of all of our foster opportunities! Think of your day foster outing as a doggy field trip! Give one of our beautiful, large dogs a break from the shelter for a few hours and go for a hike, out to lunch, or just hang out at home.
For everyone’s safety, Day Foster dogs may not be introduced to personal pets and may not go to dog parks or other off-leash areas. Your dog may even catch the eye of someone you meet and can be adopted on the spot!
Many of our adoptable large dogs (and a few adult cats) would love a comfy place to crash for a couple weeks up to a month and your home might be just the spot! Choose from a shorter-term commitment of a long weekend or keep the pup until s/he's adopted and you are ready for another!
These overnight placements are amazing for helping us learn more important information on each of our shelter pets that makes it easier to find the right fit! With your help, we can answer questions potential adopters may have such as:
- Is the pet house-trained?
- Does the pet bark a lot?
- How does the pet react around small kids, strangers, or when you leave the house?
- What is their personality like? (favorite toys, treats, spots to sleep, etc)
- and so much more!
MCACC often receives animals into its care with minor or major medical conditions that require some tender, loving care outside of the shelter environment. Animals with medical needs that can be addressed by our shelter veterinarians may include: healing fractures; post-surgical care; underweight or underaged dogs, cats, puppies, and kittens; treatment for upper respiratory infections, ringworm and other parasitic treatments; and general monitoring. Depending on the condition we are treating, foster placement could be as little as a couple weeks up to a several months.
Fosters caring for these cases may be required to attend follow-up appointments with our shelter clinic or more frequent check-ins with our Foster Coordinators. Some medical cases may also require completion of additional training.
The shelter environment can be very stressful and some of our pets are less prepared for coping with all the changes than others. Animals eligible for Behavior Foster often require a special behavior modification protocol to increase the animal’s socialization, manners, and basic skills. These foster commitments are often some of the longest we have but can also be the most rewarding.
Fosters serving in this role are often required to cooperate closely with our Behavior Team, in addition to the Foster Coordinators, and may require additional training.
Contact Us
Questions about becoming a foster parent? Call our Foster Coordinators at 602-372-1158 or send an email to ACCFoster@maricopa.gov.
Resources
The following resources can help improve your foster experience at MCACC. Review and refer back to these guides as often as needed.