Join Our Team

 
You can be a hero by fostering one of our homeless animals! Every day we see pets come to us who are too young, injured or sick to be placed in adoptive homes. Or maybe they just need a break from the shelter environment. Foster parents provide the critical bridge between shelter and adoption for these pets while they grow, or heal from their injuries or learn that people can be trusted in a loving home. Foster parents offer a safe place to stay and give the animals the love they need in their hearts. 

There are many different kinds of fostering, including medical, behavioral, short- and long-term fostering and finding homes for shelter dogs. We need all of you! Consider spending a day with a dog who has been too long at the shelter; take a dog to an off-site-adoption event; network a dog who you are fostering until permanent placement. Working together, we can save so many more.
 

Just One Dog, Just One Life

Every dog deserves a chance for a happy home. But with more than 800 dogs available on any given day at Maricopa County Animal Care and Control’s two locations, some dogs are simply overlooked.

That’s why the shelter, in cooperation with Best Friends Animal Society and Arizona Animal Rescue Mission, is asking the community to help find great dogs great homes. The shelter’s newest enhanced foster program, Just One Dog, Just One Life, aims to empower residents into taking a dog into their homes and finding the best match for the dog.

“Many dogs at our shelter simply don’t do well in our kennels,” said Mary Martin, the shelter’s director. “And with so many dogs, potential adopters can find it overwhelming. That’s why we think fostering is the best way to get our dogs out of the shelters and into homes.”

The new program offers adoption incentives for 500 medium-to-large dogs, thanks to a $25,000 grant from Best Friends, which was matched by AARM, and includes fee-waived adoptions and licensing fee and microchipping. An additional 100 dogs will be targeted for more incentives, including a “Wag Bag” with collars, leashes, toys and treats.

The streamlined program removes roadblocks to fostering, making it a simple online process, below. Once you sign up, an automated email offers a link to a short video on fostering. Foster families can pick potential candidates or have a shelter volunteer or shelter associate help. Dogs eligible for fostering include those dogs who have been at the shelter more than seven days, dogs who weigh 35 pounds or more, and are already altered and vaccinated. A limited number of dogs will be offered behavior training for their foster parents or adopters.

Easy, Fast Foster Application!

To become a foster parent, simply fill out this online application, then 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. Thank you for considering this lifesaving program.
 

Contact Us

There are thousands of pets who come through our doors every year who would benefit from foster care; we want to have trained foster parents waiting as soon as they come in. By joining our foster team, you help us expand what pets we are able to care for and allow us to save hundreds of our community pets.

Questions about becoming a foster parent? Call our West Shelter Foster Coordinator at 602-372-1158 or our East Shelter Foster Coordinator at 602-506-6279.

Medical Fostering

Want to foster an animal in need who has some medical issues? To become a foster parent, simply fill out the online application. You will be sent an email with a link to a video and after you take the foster knowledge quiz (linked from video, we will contact you. Thank you for considering this lifesaving program.