Foster Home Overview
Thank you for considering volunteering your home, time, and energy and love, in becoming a valuable part in the CHARM Rescue family. Foster homes are the backbone of our efforts to save animals; we couldn’t do it without generous and committed people like you!

Frequently Asked Questions


What is involved in being a foster home to a rescue animal?
Fostering means providing a temporary home to a homeless animal. But it also means much more than that. It means providing a loving, nurturing environment to prepare a needy animal for its forever home. A foster family will bring rescue animals in, and care for it like it was their own. CHARM supplies food for its foster families, as well as medical care (provided at one of CHARM’s participating veterinarians), including spay and/or neuter procedures. Foster families may be required to bring your foster animal to vet appointments. If this poses a hardship, it may be possible to work out transportation with another CHARM volunteer. Foster families may also need to administer medication if necessary, and CHARM will provide training and support in these situations. Upon occasion, a rescue animal will arrive with behavior concerns. CHARMs behaviorist can assist in working through these issues. You need not feel “stuck” with a foster animal, there is always help finding solutions to any situation that you run into. Rescue animals need love, nurturing and consistency to learn what it means to be in a forever family.
 
What do I need to become a foster home?
A home. It is sometimes easier to already have a resident dog/cat, but it is not required or necessary. You need space in your heart and in your life for an animal in need. CHARM doesn’t require a fenced yard for all of its foster placements, we recognize that exercise can take many forms, and a daily walk can be sufficient to keep some dogs healthy. We do require that when you are out with your foster dog, you will have them leashed and supervised at all times. It is expected that you will provide proper exercise, and work with your foster so they are accustomed to walking on a leash.

What is provided?
CHARM will provide its foster families with food for their rescue animals. We receive donated food, and foster families have access to it, if they let us know they have the need, we can coordinate the delivery/pick up of it. If a CHARMs vet recommends a specific brand of food, or a specific diet, CHARMs will arrange to have you either
·            pick it up at the vet’s office (to be billed directly to the rescue),
·            purchase it at a retail store and submit a receipt for reimbursement,
·            arrange to meet with a CHARMs rep to acquire it.
CHARM will provide a crate with its foster animals, if needed. We support crate training, and realize the importance of keeping our foster animals safe. We can provide information on crate training to our foster families, so they can help their fosters to be comfortable with being in a crate on occasion. It is valuable for our foster animals to be familiar and comfortable being confined, both for the safety of the animal, but also for the convenience of out foster families. It is also recommended that you contain your foster dog to an area that’s easy to clean (i.e. the kitchen) with a baby gate, when they cannot be fully supervised, until you are sure that they dog is trustworthy. While we don’t want foster animals to “live” in a crate, we recognize it as a valuable tool in training and safety. Adjusting to a brand new environment can be overwhelming to some animals, and providing a “den” can be comforting and familiar.
Occasionally, CHARM receives donations of treats, toys, blankets, and other supplies. Feel free to ask if there are any on hand.
CHARM has cooperative arrangements with our participating veterinarians. All vetting to be done to our rescue animals needs to be done through one of them, unless prior arrangements have been made. Your foster animal may need vaccinations, may need to be micro chipped, or be spayed or neutered. This will be done at CHARMs expense. Foster families who can bring their foster animals to vet related appointments are greatly appreciated! This may not always be possible due to scheduling conflicts. CHARM can usually connect you with another volunteer with whom you can work something out. (helping with transportation, scheduling, etc.) If a medical need becomes apparent with your foster, contact your Rep, or the rescue immediately, and you will be given instructions on what to do. If you have a life threatening emergency with your foster animal, call the rescue or Rep while on your way to the nearest emergency veterinary clinic in your area.
 
How does it work?
You will work with one of CHARMs Placement Coordinators (“Representative’s” or “Reps”) to find the right foster animal for your home and lifestyle. The amount of time that a foster animal will be with your family varies greatly. It can be as short as a week, but it may also take as long as a couple of months to find the perfect forever home. You will work closely with your Rep to discuss potential adoptive families’ for your foster animal, because you know your foster’s personality the best. Your Rep places great value on your input about its placement into a forever home. When a suitable applicant is found, your Rep will contact you to coordinate a “Meet & Greet” with them.
Again, your input on the result of this meeting will be very important to a successful placement. These meetings are scheduled when it is mutually convenient, most commonly in the evenings, or on weekends. CHARM does not sponsor “Adoption Days” at this time, but occasionally you may be asked to bring your foster animal to a rescue event, designed to introduce our needy animals to the general public, as well as educate and inform others about animal rescue.
CHARM works closely with its foster families. It is important that communication goes both ways in this arrangement. When a foster family runs into challenges, their Rep should hear about it, so that a solution can be found. Our resources provide us with the means to find solutions to most every challenge. Our network of volunteers has expertise in many areas, and is there for all of our foster families. Likewise, updates on your foster animal, including photos, are important for your Rep to receive from you, so that the animals web page can be up-to-date and accurate. E-mail is the best tool for this. Your Rep will be as attentive to you as possible. Keeping them informed of your observations of your foster animal can be instrumental in a successful placement in a forever home. We appreciate your commitment to your foster animal, all the way through to its adoption into a forever home, and weathering the challenges along the way with the help of our CHARMs family. We all understand that these animals come from situations that put them at risk, and that unnecessarily moving them during foster care can set them back, so it is our sincere hope that you will allow us to work with you to make it a successful foster experience for your rescue animal, and a rewarding one for you.
 
What if I fall in love with my foster animal?
If a foster family finds themselves bonding with their foster, they have the first option of adopting it UNTIL an applicant has worked their way through the adoption process to the point of meeting the animal. THAT applicant then has the first option of adopting over the foster home.
 
What else do I need to know?
CHARM asks that you keep in mind that many of our rescue animals come from questionable environments, either picked up as castaways, from the confines of a wire crate in a puppy mill, or from other shelters. Some have been mistreated, and need to learn how to trust. Others just need to learn how to be a member of a family, living in a loving home. But all of them can learn and heal with your patience. You can help them prepare to live the life they deserve as a valuable member in a forever family.

 Caring Hands Animal Rescue of Minnesota welcomes you into our rescue family. We are excited to work together to find homes for animals in need. Together, we can make a difference!
 
 So… does this sound like something you would like to get involved in?
 
 The next step is to fill out a Foster Home Application. This is found on our website, in the FORMS link on the left side of the screen. If you have not registered yet, you will be asked to do so before being able to complete the form.
After we receive your application, you will be contacted so that we can schedule a home visit, and you can meet with someone from CHARM to discuss in more detail, what you can expect from your fostering experience with CHARM. You may also learn of other ways that you can get involved with animal rescue.