Housing while they await forever homes.
The Allegan County Animal Shelter operated by Wishbone Pet Rescue Alliance has capacity for only 30 adult dogs and 40 cats, yet we receive 3,000-plus cats and dogs each year. Our foster program allows our highly adoptable cats and dogs to be housed for longer periods than practical within the shelter while they await forever homes.
We are looking for people who can provide a positive experience for the pet and are willing to participate in their development and adoption. We cover all medical expenses for our pets while in foster care, however, foster families are expected to provide a nutritional diet.
If you are interested in learning more, read the foster program description here or in the drop-down boxes below. Call our Foster Coordinator, Shaw Shepard, at 269-455-5247 if you have any questions. If you’d like to begin the process, please complete the foster application form; our Foster Coordinator will contact you to discuss our program. We appreciate everyone who starts the process!
Our mission is to help pets find forever homes. Without foster parents, many rescued animals’ lives would not be able to be saved. Please volunteer today and be the bridge to a permanent, loving home for our animals! Foster care parents volunteer to provide a temporary home for our rescued animals. Depending on the particular need, our animals may require a home for a matter of days, weeks or even months. As a foster parent, all we ask is that you provide a safe, loving home until the animal is adopted or returned to its owner. We will supply all food, vaccinations and any required medical care. In addition, we will spay or neuter the pet if needed.
Rescued pets sometimes require immediate medical care. After Wishbone handles the veterinary emergency, a temporary home will be needed where the animal can recuperate in a loving atmosphere before moving to a longer-stay foster home or being adopted.
Pet owners have medical emergencies too. When they do not have a family immediately available to care for their pet, it creates stress and anxiety for both the patient and the pet. Kennels may not be available – they may be too costly, or the owner may not want his or her beloved pet kenneled. Wishbone provides temporary homes for these pets in need. As a hospital stay foster parent, you will supply love and support for the pet while the patient recuperates.
Cats or dogs still nursing their kittens or puppies when they are rescued cannot be separated until the litter is old enough. Litter parents provide a temporary loving home for the mother and her litter until they are old enough to be placed in different foster homes or adopted.
Wishbone Pet Rescue Alliance supports Sylvia’s Place, a women’s shelter in Allegan for victims of domestic abuse. When a woman is struggling with the decision to leave her home, beloved pets become a source of great concern, often delaying or preventing the decision to leave. Wishbone helps to alleviate the anxiety by providing an alternate home for pets while their owners transition through Sylvia’s Place to a new life. We call it the PAWS program – Protecting Animals and Women in Shelters. As a Sylvia’s Place foster parent, you can provide a temporary loving home for their pets until they are settled into their new life. Foster parents must sign a confidentiality statement and allow for visits by the pet’s owner. If you are a woman in crisis and unsure what to do about your pet, know that with the help of Sylvia’s Place and Wishbone, you have options. Your case worker at Sylvia’s House will work with Wishbone to arrange safe, secure and confidential care for your pet or pets.
Extended-stay foster parents are the backbone of the Wishbone foster program. They provide a long-term loving home for pets of all ages and breeds as Wishbone works to find them forever homes. The length of stay can vary depending on the adoption process. Although Wishbone is responsible for locating a permanent home for the pet, foster parents play an active role in selecting and approving the pet’s forever family.