It's time for our 𝐌𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐡𝐥𝐲 𝐅𝐨𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐒𝐩𝐨𝐭𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭!! July's feature is all about one of our awesome foster families! We hope you enjoy what foster mom, Niome Krauskopf, has to say on behalf of her whole family. 

If these monthly spotlights inspire you to want to give fostering a try, we would love to hear from you, as we are always in need of more foster homes. 

 

𝑸. 𝑾𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒅𝒐𝒆𝒔 𝒇𝒐𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒎𝒆𝒂𝒏 𝒕𝒐 𝒚𝒐𝒖? 𝑾𝒉𝒚 𝒅𝒐 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒇𝒐𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒓? 

𝐀. Our family has been fostering dogs for many years — from North Carolina to Washington — and it has brought us immeasurable joy. We began this journey after one half of our own bonded pair passed away. The loss was heartbreaking, and while we knew we still wanted dogs in our lives, we felt called to try something different. Fostering became the perfect way to open our home to dogs who needed it most.

 

Fostering resonates deeply with us because it allows our family to step in during an animal’s moment of greatest need. We get to provide safety, stability, and love, to help them learn the basics of “how to dog”, and to prepare them for the forever home waiting just around the corner. 

 

Both my husband and I are social workers, so being there for someone in their most vulnerable moments is a core part of who we are. Fostering feels like a natural extension of that calling.

 

𝑸. 𝑾𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒘𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒔𝒂𝒚 𝒕𝒐 𝒔𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒄𝒐𝒏𝒔𝒊𝒅𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒇𝒐𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒇𝒐𝒓 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒇𝒊𝒓𝒔𝒕 𝒕𝒊𝒎𝒆? 

𝐀. Fostering dogs has had a life-changing impact on our entire family. Our three daughters — Jubilee, Liberty, and Serenity — have grown up alongside our foster dogs, helping care for them and cheering them on as they blossom. We have learned a lot as a family about the different breeds of dogs we enjoy, the dog lifespan, our resident dogs’ needs, and how to adjust to each dog’s unique set of needs. 

 

We work hard as a family to meet each dog’s unique needs; whether that is potty training, creating space for a dog’s individual needs, giving space, gentle approaches, positive reinforcement, and how to navigate through any health issues that might have popped up in the dog’s life cycle. Through this experience, they’ve learned responsibility, patience, giving back to the community, how to build a bond/connection, and the true meaning of unconditional love.

 

When that special day arrives, we shed happy tears watching the dogs bring joy to their new families, knowing we played a small part in their journey. As a family we have all focused on the true goal of helping as many pups as we can in our lifetime by continuing to foster.

 

𝑸. 𝑨𝒏𝒚𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒆𝒍𝒔𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒘𝒂𝒏𝒕 𝒕𝒐 𝒔𝒉𝒂𝒓𝒆? 

𝐀. Fostering has shaped our family in beautiful ways, and we’re grateful for every dog who has passed through our home and left pawprints on our hearts.