Volunteer/Foster

The smallest, youngest, and most vulnerable pets need you!

Fostering a pet is not a lifetime commitment; it’s a commitment to save a life.

We are always looking for foster parents who are willing to open their home and hearts to take animals home to help with various health, behavior, or medical needs.

Why foster?

  • Fostering provides a safe and healthy environment for animals who need to heal, grow or get some extra TLC while they look for homes. This includes important socialization.

  • Fostering animals creates more space in shelters for other animals in need.

  • Your life becomes a lot more interesting (and adorable)!

  • Fostering introduces cats and kittens to new pools of prospective adopters.

  • It's so rewarding to watch them learn and grow.

  • Fostering animals saves lives. Period!

Things to note before becoming a foster parent:

  1. You do not need to be a full CMPD Volunteer to be a foster parent.

  2. Being a foster parent includes actively looking for a new home which means that the animal could be listed as available and your contact information will be listed on the website.

  3. Potential adopters will contact you directly via your email. First email has first dibs to meet and adopt. We do not do home/vet/reference checks.

  4. Some foster animals need to be separated from the rest of the pets in your household.

  5. Pictures are bios are required to be sent to our foster coordinator within the first week they are in your home.

  6. Fosters can keep certain fosters pets for up to 6 months, but, if they are not adopted, they will be required to come back to the shelter. Or you can adopt them yourself.

  7. Our greatest foster needs are:

    1. Small and large dogs who need socialization

    2. Large dogs who need a break from the kennels

    3. Pets who had to undergo surgery or need medical recovery

    4. Bottle baby/neonate orphaned kittens

    5. Weaned kittens that need socialization and weight gain

    6. Momma cats with nursing babies

You must be at least 18 years of age before applying but you do not have to be a Mecklenburg County resident.

Find the guidelines and application online.

Once approved you'll be contacted by our foster coordinator, Amy Yeager. She'll send you a "congratulations" email, along with your foster packet that has further instructions and rules to follow.

*Please note that this foster program is only for our shelter animals in need of foster care. If you own a pet that you need to find a foster home for, you need to contact rescues groups to see if they can assist.*

If you are already a foster parent, you can schedule health checks/follow ups for your fosters.