Fosters Needed for the ASPCA Recovery & Rehabilitation Center in Pawling, New York

Select R&R Center dogs are available for foster. 

We most commonly need fosters for:

• Recovering, sick or injured dogs of all sizes
• Adult dogs with special behavioral needs
• Dogs in need of a break from the shelter environment
• Pregnant or mother dogs with a litter of puppies

Fostering is essential to the success of the R&R Center. Some of the many benefits of fostering include: 

• Socialization and Adoption Prep: Adult dogs and puppies can benefit from attentive foster caregivers to help socialize them and teach them all about life in a home. With your help, these dogs will have the opportunity to become confident, trusting, and trusted companions.
• Information Gathering: Foster caregivers can provide invaluable information about a dog’s behavior in the home, as well as likes and dislikes, that help the R&R Center’s staff make better decisions about a dog’s placement. 
• Medical Recovery: Foster caregivers can give dogs undergoing medical treatment or recovering from surgery a soft place to land and heal by monitoring their progress closely and ensuring they get all the attention, love and care they need to make a full and speedy recovery.
• Shelter Break: Like humans, dogs can benefit from a vacation from time to time. A change of scenery can reduce stress levels, provide quiet time to decompress and enrich a dog’s life by introducing new sights, sounds, smells and experiences. 
• Last but not least, fostering makes room for more dogs to get the help they need at the shelter! 

Fostering an animal is a rewarding experience, and it directly improves the lives of shelter animals. Whether you’re helping a dog learn to love and be loved or watching a dog recover from illness or injury, fostering gives you the chance to single-handedly change an animal’s life for the better. You can be the bridge from an animal's past to their new life. Many of our animals come from tough circumstances and need someone special to help them along their journey — could that be you?

The ASPCA covers all medical expenses and provides foster caregivers with the food, equipment and supplies they need to care for their foster animals. You provide your home, time, attention, commitment and love!

Foster periods typically last anywhere from days to months, depending on the dog’s needs. We make expectations clear for each animal, to the extent possible, so that you can pick the best match for you and your schedule.

To join the foster program, you must be:

• At least 18 years old
• Located in or near Pawling, New York

Not in Pawling, but still interested in learning more about fostering animals? You can foster for the ASPCA in New York City, Columbus, Ohio, Asheville, North Carolina and Los Angeles. You can also look for fostering opportunities at your local shelter. 

In some cases, yes! Suitability is assessed case by case, and the R&R team will work with you to determine whether your own pets and the dog you’re interested in fostering will be comfortable sharing a home.

If you have other pets, they must be up to date on vaccinations and you must be able to provide a separate space for your foster pet to allow for a gradual and safe introduction. For dog owners looking to foster dogs, we will arrange a dog-to-dog meet-and-greet with our behavior team to see if the dogs get along.

If you foster for other organizations, that's great too! We just ask that you refrain from fostering for multiple organizations at the same time, to prevent safety and health concerns.

Fosters may need additional guidance from the behavior and medical teams at the R&R, depending on the needs of the animal. We do our best to place animals with fosters who already have experience or abilities that align with the animal’s needs and expected lifestyle. The R&R Center also offers training for fosters who have expressed an interest in increasing their animal handling abilities.

If your question regarding fostering was not answered here, please reach out to [email protected] with your name, contact information, and your question. Someone from our team will get back to you as soon as possible.

The R&R Center is part of Rehabilitation Services, which also includes the Behavioral Rehabilitation Center (BRC) in Weaverville, North Carolina, the Cruelty Recovery Center (CRC) in Columbus, Ohio, and the Learning Lab.