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The #StayHomeAndFoster movement is turning social distancing into a lifesaving opportunity for homeless pets and overwhelmed shelters. Here's how to jump in.
Craving a break from the anxiety-soaked headlines and a chance to do some real good while social distancing? Why not foster a pet? Fostering doesn't just rescue a life—it dials down the stress for both the animal and the human or family suddenly stuck at home during this difficult stretch. A new movement is aiming to get shelter pets into temporary homes across the pandemic.
#StayHomeAndFoster is a nationwide campaign offering a solution to the countless homeless pets at risk of euthanasia because of the COVID-19 pandemic. For anyone able to welcome a shelter animal into their home while social distancing, there's never been a better time to foster. Many shelters are shuttering their doors or slashing hours to appointment-only amid the health crisis. To make matters worse, we're barreling into kitten and puppy season, when intake numbers climb exponentially. The biggest fear for most open-intake shelters is being forced to close while blocked from adopting out—leaving them instantly over capacity and unable to help the incoming pets who need them most.
"The COVID-19 pandemic has created an unprecedented animal sheltering crisis in the United States, and homeless pets with nowhere to go are at risk of being euthanized," said Liz Baker, CEO of GreaterGood.org. "Fostering a pet is the solution, and StayHomeAndFoster.org makes it easy by connecting would-be foster parents with local shelters." StayHomeAndFoster.org offers a universal national form where interested fosterers can register and be matched by GreaterGood.org with one of the thousands of shelters across the U.S. Many shelters offer foster-pet delivery or low-contact pickup. Fosters are needed for dogs and cats nationwide for two to six weeks.
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