Animal Welfare Professionals

I volunteer for The Great Pyrenees Club of Western Pa Rescue. Because the dogs we take in are usually giant sized and very hairy we have a hard time with finding Fosters & Adopters. Does anyone have any suggestions or ideas that may help. We post on social media constantly but since we do require a fenced yard it limits our possibilities. 

#AdoptionsandAdoptionPrograms

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Janice Trzeciak
volunteer
Great Pyrenees Club of Western Pa
PA
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Hi Janice,

Thank you for caring for the "big ones." I can definitely see the difficulty in recruiting. I used to volunteer for a local shelter and the big dogs are always the last to get their walks as most people would rather walk the smaller size ones. I ended up becoming the big dog walker the four years that I volunteered. You may find a foster out there that don't mind the larger size dogs. Agree with you that fenced yard can be a barrier. What do you think about offering grooming and extra food to the foster? And maybe good walking equipment to give the fosters some control. Thanks again for rescuing the big dogs! 

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Julielani Chang
The Life of Kai: Compassion Connections Inc.
Davis CA
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Thank you. Since I am a groomer I do Groom the rescues for free but I can only do so many a month. The food is all covered by the rescue while they foster. Good idea about good walking equipment.  Our biggest issue is just getting them interested. 

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Janice Trzeciak
volunteer
Great Pyrenees Club of Western Pa
PA
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Original Message:
Sent: 06-22-2024 08:58 AM
From: Julielani Chang
Subject: Foster homes

Hi Janice,

Thank you for caring for the "big ones." I can definitely see the difficulty in recruiting. I used to volunteer for a local shelter and the big dogs are always the last to get their walks as most people would rather walk the smaller size ones. I ended up becoming the big dog walker the four years that I volunteered. You may find a foster out there that don't mind the larger size dogs. Agree with you that fenced yard can be a barrier. What do you think about offering grooming and extra food to the foster? And maybe good walking equipment to give the fosters some control. Thanks again for rescuing the big dogs! 

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Julielani Chang
The Life of Kai: Compassion Connections Inc.
Davis CA
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Is there any option to remove or reduce the requirement to have a fenced yard? I understand the thought that it will provide a more secure location, but Pyrs are also big, strong dogs! A 3 foot fence or an improperly stretched wire fence might not actually have that much ability to stop an adventurous Pyr who can go over or under. 

If you can't remove the fence requirement, is there any way to help foster families build a suitable fence? I'm picturing contractors who might be willing to build at a lower rate, with the rescue and the foster family splitting the cost. Or getting donated kennel panels or hog fencing panels that can go to a foster when they take on a dog, and be passed to the next foster and next dog when this dog gets adopted.

If you have happy foster families right now, getting them to share some testimonials can be a good way to help draw in new fosters. Asking them to share a favorite photo of their family with their foster dog and a couple sentences about why they like fostering can be an easy way to generate FB posts that make fostering sound like fun. 

Do you do any off-line foster recruitment? Flyers in stores, radio or newspaper ads, attending local events, etc.?

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Emme Hones
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Hi Janice, I'm fostering right now for National Great Pyrennes Rescue.  I also foster for our local shelter which is more focused on smaller dogs because of the big senior population where we are located.  I do know NGPR adopts out to people without fences (but not sure about fostering).  It just depends on the dog.  But you're right, for the most part, they would prefer that you have a 6-8 foot visible fence and a big vacuum cleaner for the hair ;).  Pyrs are being euthanized in such distressing numbers right now, I can't even look at my facebook posts anymore. So many critical dogs.   I know you guys are doing all you can to save as many as you can and thank you for that.  They are beautiful animals.  One thing that allows me to foster for the local shelter more than NGPR is that we have some local kennels so as a single person, if I have to travel, I can leave the dog in the kennels and volunteers take care of it until I get back.  It's more difficult with a National organization like NGPR because the dog gets transported to me and then I have it until it gets adopted, which sometimes take a while with a big dog.  Good luck in your efforts! 

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Peggy Schipper
All Fur One
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