Maddie's Fund

Creating and Growing a Dog Foster Network

Ann Lindholm and Kelly DuerMarch 2018

With a viable foster program it's possible to begin saving lives and transforming your community to no-kill, even if you don't have a shelter. Learn how to build a successful foster program that can grow with your organization.

Essentials of Saving Big Dogs

Kristen Auerbach, Mike Kaviani, Clare CallisonMarch 2018

Experts present the essential programs, best practices, and core philosophies needed to start saving the big dogs in your communities. Think of this presentation as the key ingredients needed to move towards and achieve 90% for your community's dogs.

High Volume Cat Foster Program

Ashley MiddletonMarch 2018

Fosters often mean the difference between life and death for cats in the shelter. Austin Pets Alive's Cat Foster Manager discuss how to recruit foster homes, place cats in foster, and maintain a foster network.

Saving All The Bottle Baby Kittens: From Nursery To Foster Presentation - Part 2

Gloria HudsonMarch 2018

Austin Pets Alive! (APA) has saved over 7,500 neonatal kittens since 2009. In this is a two-part presentation, you'll learn how to start and build a bottle baby nursery, plus how to create a foster network for neonates. This is part two: How to create a foster network for neonates.

Foster Sleepovers: How Temporary Fostering Can Improve the Lives of Shelter Dogs

Lisa Gunter and Kelly DuerMarch 2018

Whether you're looking to start a foster program at your shelter, or give a boost to an already-existing foster program, Maddie's Fund^® has a webcast series for you!

This free webcast on Thursday, March 8, 2018, at 9 PM Eastern will show you how temporary fostering can improve the lives of shelter dogs.

Foster Field Trips: A Gateway to Community Engagement in Getting Pets Adopted

Kelly DuerFebruary 2018

Whether you're looking to start a foster program at your shelter, or give a boost to an already-existing foster program, Maddie's Fund^® has a webcast series for you!

In a free webcast on Thursday, March 1, 2018, at 9 PM Eastern, Foster Field Trips: A Gateway to Community Engagement in Getting Pets Adopted, you will learn how getting pets out of the shelter for even a few hours can create benefits for the pet, the community, and the adoption organization.

Treatment Station: Training for Care

Fear FreeFebruary 2018

Watch this short video on conditioning your foster pet to a treatment station to find out how to best utilize it to help you care for your foster pet.

Basket Muzzle Training

Fear FreeFebruary 2018

Conditioning a dog to be comfortable wearing a muzzle is an important life skill. In this short video by Fear Free you can learn how to do exactly that.

Study: Foster caregiver turnover and how your animal welfare organization can combat it

January 30, 2018

Ever wonder why foster caregivers stop fostering? How can your organization increase retention? Maddie's Fund® set out to answer these questions by sponsoring a recent study at UNC Charlotte on foster care. The results, and what your organization can do about the problem, may surprise you. "The purpose of this study was to better understand… Learn More

New app helps foster families at Almost Home Humane Society

June 28, 2017

Since launching Maddie's® Pet Assistant early last month, hundreds of shelters and rescue organizations across the country have expressed interest in bringing the app to their own foster and/or adoption programs. As with any new technology system or app, feedback is key to making sure it's doing what it was set out to do — in… Learn More

Using foster care to increase lifesaving in large dogs

May 2, 2017

Can you place medium and large dogs with behavioral problems in foster homes and see their behavior improve? Can those dogs eventually be adopted into permanent homes? And can all of that be done safely? Those were the objectives of a 22-month long study conducted by Fairfax County Animal Shelter in Virginia. The result? A… Learn More

Playing with your Foster Dog

January 2017

Playing is a great way to bond and get to know your foster dog. Learn More

Download the Alley Cat Allies guide to foster programs for cats and kittens!

June 21, 2016

What happens when you mix a giant name in cat welfare and two leaders in sheltering and adoption? You get incredible resources like Alley Cat Allies‘ guide to fostering cats and kittens, written with Bonney Brown and Diane Blankenburg of Humane Network, who while at the Nevada Humane Society led a successful program that provided… Learn More

Community Pet Adoption Survey Results - Foster Caregiver Involvement in Adoption

February 2016

Generally speaking, the model for foster programs has been a period of temporary pet fostering, followed by return of the animal to the shelter for adoption. Although foster caregivers are in a unique position to give insights into pet health and pet behavior in a home environment, foster caregiver involvement in the adoption process has been a fairly new and fairly controversial subject. In this survey report, we examined how often caregivers choose to be involved, to what extent organizations actually allow involvement and more. Learn More

‘Tis the season to #FalalaFoster!

December 2, 2015

Do you want to bring home some magic this holiday season? Want to experience the joy you remember from your childhood — and save a pet’s life at the same time? Here’s how: Foster a homeless pet! Fostering doesn’t just give pets a place to lay their heads. Spending time in a home, with a… Learn More

Community Pet Adoption Partnerships Survey Results: Stray Kitten Scenario

June 2015

During the Summer of 2014, Maddie’s Institute^® conducted a survey to assess strategies that may prevent animals from entering shelter facilities. One such strategy involves asking community members who bring in kittens to care for them until organizational resources are available or they are old enough to be placed for adoption.  This report addresses the extent to which organizations encourage community member care, the frequency of community members who elect to provide care, how organizational resources link to involvement and more.
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Creating and Sustaining a Dog Foster Network

Ann LindholmFebruary 2015

With a viable foster program it's possible to begin transforming your community to no-kill, even if you don't have a shelter. Learn how a one person position grew into a dog foster team of more than 35 volunteers. This team supports a network of over 1,000 approved foster parents. Learn More

Saving All the Little Dogs: Small Dog Behavior Issues

Faith Wright and Deaven WilsonFebruary 2015

Do you know how many small breed dogs are euthanized in your community shelter?  In Austin, Texas in 2008, it was many more than would have been expected (roughly 500).   Do you know that nearly ALL of them can be saved and although many are marked "aggressive”, they rarely are? Learn More

Creating and Growing a Successful Cat Foster Program

Ashley FerryFebruary 2015

Fosters often mean the difference between life and death for cats in the shelter. They are essential in addressing overcrowding issues, shelter behavior problems and providing personalized care for medical conditions. Learn More

How to Start and Grow a Large Bottle Baby Program in Your Community, Part 1

Casandra MensingFebruary 2015

In this is a two-part presentation, you’ll learn how to start and build a bottle baby nursery, plus how to create a foster network for neonates. In Part 1, Casandra Mensing will share her experience running APA!’s Nursery, from its meager beginnings to the groundbreaking phenomenon that it is today. Learn More

How to Start and Grow a Large Bottle Baby Program Part 2

Rachel Sherinian February 2015

In this is a two-part presentation, you’ll learn how to start and build a bottle baby nursery, plus how to create a foster network for neonates. In Part 2, Rachel Sherinian will focus In finding, training, and retaining specialized foster families for kittens, whether you have a nursery or not.  Learn More

Taking Troubled Tabbies from Naughty to Nice

Sara Cookson and Kristin Hill February 2015

Every rescue encounters troubled cats with issues that go beyond tortitude. The Austin Pet’s Alive! Cat Behavior Team will teach you how to prevent behavior problems before they start. Learn More

Volunteer 1.0: Volunteer Recruitment and Engagement

Gerri KapplerFebruary 2015

Austin Pets Alive! is well known for its huge volunteer force (over 2,000 hours per week). But in 2008 APA! started with no funds for staff and relied solely on volunteers to do everything related to saving lives and building a huge organization. How did they do it?  Learn More

Secrets to Pet Foster Program Success

Sherri Franklin, Laurie Routhier, Marie Macaspac November 2014

What if your shelter or rescue group had a long list of people wanting to foster pets for you? What if you had a great system in place to recruit, train, reward and manage those foster homes? What if you had a whole army of people to help get those pets ready for adoption? Learn More

Treating the Treatables: Saving Lives Through Medical Protocols, Foster Care and Proactive Thinking

Elizabeth Berliner, DVM, MA, DABVP (Canine/Feline Practice)September 2014

Does your shelter or rescue group have medical protocols in place to care for your pets and for your fostered dogs and cats? Foster programs are critical if we want to help more pets who are facing treatable medical conditions, and to expand the capacity of a community to care for its homeless pets. Learn More

Orphaned Kitten Survey Results

September 2013

Orphaned kittens are the most fragile of homeless animals, and many shelters consider it too resource-intensive to care for them. For that reason, they often make up the largest single group of animals euthanized at many shelters. We surveyed shelters and rescue organizations to gather data on: care and housing, prevalence of health issues, training given to individuals who provide care, and challenges organizations may face in providing care for kittens. Learn More

Orphaned Kitten Care - How to Videos

Laurie Peek, DVM and Heidi Beyer, CVTApril 2013

These short videos will provide essential care instructions for orphaned kittens. Whether you are a seasoned foster parent or just getting started saving these orphaned baby lives, these videos will guide you through the basics. Learn More

Caring for Orphaned Kittens: A How-To Guide for Shelters

Laurie Peek, DVMApril 2013

Based on years of personal experience, Maddie's Fund Director of Veterinary Programs Laurie Peek, DVM, provides a step-by-step guide to caring for orphaned kittens, including how to recognize, avoid and respond to the most common threats they face. Learn More