How fostering saves lives #FoodShelterLove

Greetings from Times Square—the crossroads of the world—where we be shouting about Hill’s® Food, Shelter & Love™ program.

This post is sponsored by Hill’s. I am being compensated for helping spread the word about Hill’s® Food, Shelter, & Love Program, but Stunning Keisha only shares information I feel is relevant to my readers. Hill’s Pet Nutrition, Inc. is not responsible for the content of this article.

Being a city kitty is easy for me because I live in a nice condo with staff at my beck and call. However, it isn’t easy for the many homeless kitties roaming the streets or living in shelters. Believe me, I came from the streets and went through the shelter system. The shelters I was at were nowhere near as cozy as today’s shelters. We didn’t get the quality food they serve today, thanks to Hill’s® Food, Shelter & Love™ program.

Top & center pic courtesy Hill’s Pet

Bottom pic ©Lucid Waters/Deposit Photos

Lemme tell you a bit about the program before I tell you how fostering saves lives. The Hill’s Food, Shelter & Love™ program is based on encouraging individuals to volunteer at their local shelters; make donations to these shelters and I don’t just mean monetary donations; educating pet parents how nutritious food can help shelter pets; and helping get shelter pets adopted. Towards those aims, they’ve provided over $240 million worth of food to nearly 1000 shelters and have helped over 6 million pets find their forever castles. One of the foods they donate is Hill’s® Science Diet® Kitten Healthy Development food. If you’ve been reading this blog, you’ll know that on a regular basis, we donate food, litter, bedding and cleaning supplies to our rescue.

Kitten Season—which usually starts in March—arrived early this year. We know firsthand cos TW was looking for a TNR to spay Mama Maple Cat earlier this year. Before she knew it, there were kittens. These kitties were lucky to be rescued by UCFCC and are all in foster care. Shelters do not look forward to Kitten Season because many are overcrowded already. Many kittens born during kitten season are brought to animal control and euthanized. Unlike dogs, cats don’t have to be held for any length of time before that happens. That’s why fostering helps shelters and saves lives.

Fostering also help kitties get socialized so when they walk into a furever home, they don’t get returned. TW wishes I had been fostered. My foster peeps would have taught me to enjoy getting cuddles and that I shouldn’t bite the hand that feeds me.

My Aunt Karen Hill knows all about fostering. She’s fostered over a hunntert dogs and cats over the last seven years. A few years ago I innerviewed Aunt Karen and we shared a pawsome video about fostering.

I talked with Aunt Karen recently and axed her to share some tips on fostering and foster fails. If you’ve never fostered because you’re afraid you’d want to keep them, her response may change your mind.

CK: So what are some tips for making sure you’re not a foster fail?

Karen Hill: My best tip on fostering is to answer the question I always get asked. How do you foster and not get attached? Well, I actually get attached to all my foster cats! I have fostered hundreds over the past 7 years and loved every one of them. However, I always have looked at the big picture of how many cats are euthanized daily at local kill shelters. If I kept some of my fosters, I wouldn't have room to continue to foster more and that helps save lives. I have, unfortunately, seen the stacks of cages of cats and dogs waiting to enter the euthanasia room at a local shelter. It is an eye opening experience not in a good way. Fostering saves lives … bottom line. It makes a spot for a cat that would have been euthanized. By fostering, I help these sweet little cats (and dogs) along on their journey for a forever family. There is so much joy when they are adopted. When I started volunteering, I wanted to help animals, of course, but hadn't considered how it completes a circle for the new adopters too. It is social work in many ways and fills my heart with happiness.

CK: How long do the fosters stay in your house before they set off into the world?

KH: I usually have the kittens until they are old enough to be spayed/neutered and then we try to move them into one of our adoption centers where they’ll be seen. I had fostered 3 other kittens with Reggie that were a little younger from a different litter and they were adopted within 2 weeks of moving to to the store. Typically it can be 8 weeks or less. I will foster mom and kittens a lot and they can be 10+ weeks if they come to me fairly newborn. For adult cats, it depends. Sometimes several months or not that long if they are adopted.

I hope Aunt Karen has convinced you to consider fostering and saving lives. TW would love to foster but our condo is too small and … well… I’m very jealous. We tried once and I almost killed the kitten when Pop went near her. I’ll bet if I had been fostered myself, I would have welcomed her.

Hill’s knows that every shelter pet should get the proper nutrition. Did you know that when you purchase Hill’s Science Diet for your cat, you’re helping support this important program?

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