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Community Corner

Wanted: A Place of Their Own

County humane society seeks foster caregivers for animals before they are adopted.

Diane Stalder always felt sorry for the kids whose parents wouldn’t let them have a pet.

Stalder—who grew up with cats, birds, dogs and a horse—has always loved animals. So, of course, when the volunteer heard there was a need for foster homes she readily stepped up. She started in 2002 with cats and kittens, then added rabbits. These days she’s fostering a mother cat and her five kittens, plus four other cats, four rabbits and a chinchilla.

“I’m retired, and this is what I’m doing now—full-time fostering,” Stalder said.

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About 100 fosters care for 200 cats, dogs and other small mammals, said b j Altschul, director of external relations for the Montgomery County Humane Society. Humane society officials are seeking more fosters to help care for the dozens of litters of kittens that are brought to the shelter every spring. Kittens need to be at least eight weeks old before they can be adopted, and foster homes give them a chance to be cared for and socialized while they’re very young.

"Kitten season"—the unofficial name for cat mating season—begins in early spring and continues through early fall. The need for foster homes grows along with the kitten population. In March 2010, the county Humane Society took in 185 adoptable cats and kittens, Altschul said. The number peaked at 305 in July and remained at more than 240 every month through October.

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Still, that’s not to say foster homes are needed only during cat mating season.

“While we especially need help during kitten season every year, the need for fosters is ongoing,” Altschul, said. Some animals need the tender loving care that’s available in a foster home, she said, or some need additional medical care before being ready for adoption. A spare room or bathroom can be enough space for fostering an animal. Stalder uses her basement—the rabbits are in pens, the chinchilla is in a cage and the mother cat and kittens have space to explore and play.

She encourages people to foster, and to start with just one kitten or one adult cat. She advises new fosters to go to adoption shows, place ads, and be prepared to get a lot of phone calls and e-mails. Also, she said, “don’t be discouraged if it takes a while.”

There’s no time limit on fostering, she said. But at the same time, “I’ve never had a kitten that didn’t get adopted.”

Caring for so many animals is a big responsibility, but Stalder said she loves it. “It’s very rewarding,” she said.

For more information on fostering, contact foster coordinator Lauren Prebilic at 240-793-4201 or fostermau@mchumane.org.

To see foster animals that are available for adoption, go to 

http://www.mchumane.org/animalfoster.shtml.

To see animals in the shelters, check out 

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