FOSTER PROGRAM
Considering fostering? Fill out our GVAC Foster Application and email it back to info@animalcrusaders.ca
Open your heart and home and give an animal a second chance at life!
Greater Victoria Animals’ Crusaders (GVAC) appreciates your interest in fostering an animal that has been rescued.
Making the decision to foster an animal is a big responsibility and we want to ensure that everyone in your household realizes this. Therefore, we will do everything possible to make the right match for you and the animal.
If you decide to take part in our foster program, you could be making the difference between life and death for an animal that has been abandoned, abused, or neglected. Unfortunately, some animals that are brought to us are too sick, too young, or not socialized enough to be adopted out right away. These animals just need time to heal in a loving and safe environment.
Foster volunteers take these animals into their home, providing a safe environment for them to mature, become more socialized, or heal from an existing wound or illness. This can be an intense commitment, but also a very rewarding one.
Need is especially great during spring/summer kitten season, when pregnant cats and mothers with litters of kittens (and in many cases the kittens mothers) are found without a home. Until the kittens are old enough to be weaned and separated from the mother, they cannot be put up for adoption. All these animals need is a safe, warm place to be loved and taken care of until we can find them a forever home.
If you are interested in becoming a foster parent or have questions regarding the program, please email us at info@animalcrusaders.ca
Below are the most commonly asked questions regarding our foster program:
Why does GVAC have a foster program? GVAC has a foster care program because we don’t have a shelter or facility to house these animals in. In order for us to help them and give them a second chance at life, we need to have a safe place for them to stay until we can adopt them into permanent homes.
Who can foster animals? Anyone can foster animals; however, we will require you to fill out a foster home application and allow us to be a home check so that we can ensure that they are provided with the best possible care while in their foster home.
What are the foster home’s responsibilities? GVAC expects all animals held in foster homes will be welcomed as a member of the family. Foster care givers must be able to provide a clean, safe environment in which to care for the animals to prevent injury and the spread of disease.
It is the foster home’s responsibility to ensure their own pets are fully vaccinated to prevent possibly transferring any diseases.
In the event that the animal in your foster care becomes ill, you must contact GVAC immediately, and the veterinary costs are paid for fully by us.
How do these animals find homes? Once the animal is placed in foster care, GVAC will place the animal up for adoption. If the animal needs time to mature, learn social skills, or recover from illness, GVAC will keep in contact with the foster home regarding the animal’s progress. Once things have improved, GVAC will then proceed with placing the animal up for adoption.
Special considerations for fostering dogs: We require that foster care providers of dogs have a fenced yard with some form of shelter. Additionally, a place should be provided in the home where the dog is welcome as they are social animals who crave interaction with people.
Special considerations for fostering cats: All cats fostered from GVAC must be kept indoors at all times to prevent them from running away, injury, and spread of disease. If you with to introduce a new cat into your household with existing pets, keep the cat separate from the other animals until they adjust to their new surroundings.
Animals that qualify for the foster program fall into one of the following categories:
- Healthy unwanted animals that have been abandoned
- Pregnant or nursing animals (cats and dogs)
- Animals recovering from injuries (cats and dogs)
- Dogs with kennel cough or cats with URI’s (upper respiratory infections)
- Mildly sick animals under the care of a veterinarian (cats and dogs)
- Orphan kittens or puppies found, often as young as 3-4 weeks old
Sadly, many people think cats are disposable and the majority of our animals in need of fostering are cats.
Criteria for Fostering:
- You must be at least 19 years of age
- Your current pets must all be spayed or neutered and up to date on vaccinations
- You must have a separate room to isolate a foster animal
- You must have time to care for your foster animal
- You must abide by the foster agreement that you sign upon joining the program
We require a commitment of anywhere from 2 days to 90 days to help care for and provide love to one of our many homeless animals in need.
If you would like to open up your heart and home to a needy animal, please contact us today:
Email info@animalcrusaders.ca
PLEASE HELP US HELP A DESPERATE ANIMAL IN NEED !
VOLUNTEERS NEEDED
Interested in helping out? Just fill out our GVAC Volunteer Application Form and email it back to info@animalcrusaders.ca
Volunteers needed to help with feral cat care – Various positions
Are you interested in learning more about how to help feral cats? We are looking for volunteers to help in all areas of feral cat care from helping with their feeding schedules, trapping feral cats to be spayed/neutered vaccinated and then released back to their colonies, transporting feral cats to and from the vet, and holding them for a night or two for post-surgery recovery. Anyone interested in helping out with the trap, spay/neuter, vaccinate, and return program that we support is asked to please contact us at info@animalcrusaders.ca
Feeding
If you would like to help out with feeding of some of these feral colonies, we are looking for people who have one or maybe two days a week to dedicate to head out to one of our feral colony locations. All you would need to do is put down fresh water and food for these feral cats one or two specific days per week. We do provide the food, so the only cost to you would be a bit of time and maybe some gas. There are so many colonies around our region, it is tough for us to reach them all.
This volunteer position is best-suited to those with their own transportation who can dedicate one or two regular days per week to help with feeding. More details will be provided to those seriously interested in assisting with feeding feral cats.
Please contact us at info@animalcrusaders.ca.
Trapping
Perhaps you are more adventerous and want to get more involved with feral cats… we are always looking for people who want to help trap feral cats and transport them to the vet to be spayed/neutered and vaccinated. We pay for all veterinary costs involved and will show anyone interested how to use a trap to catch a feral cat. We would supply the traps as well for anyone interested in getting involved with this part of feral cat care.
This volunteer position is best-suited to those with their own transportation and are in fairly good physical condition. It is also helpful if you are familiar with cats. We will give more information and details to those who contact us wanting to help with trapping and transportation.
Please contact us at info@animalcrusaders.ca.
Recovery
We are also looking for people who can help with post-surgery recovery of these feral cats. Once they are spayed/neutered, vaccinated, dewormed, and deflead, they need to recover for about 24-48 hours before being released back at their colony. If anyone has a garage or basement area they don’t mind having a cat or two recover in a cage for awhile before being released, we would love to hear from you.
This volunteer position is best-suited to those that are familiar with handling and caring for cats. It is also very helpful if you have your own transportation. We would supply the cage or kennel and will give more details to anyone who is interested in helping with this part of feral cat care.
Please contact us at info@animalcrusaders.ca.
Animal Transport and General Transport
We are looking for volunteers with their own transportation who can help out on a casual or regular basis. This volunteer position would help us with transporting cats and dogs (mostly cats) to and from vet appointments, picking up and delivering supplies to foster homes, and picking up donated items. If you have a few hours here and there you could donate, we would love to hear from you! All that is required is a bit of gas and your invaluable time.
This volunteer position requires your own transportation; hours and days are flexible.
Please contact us at info@animalcrusaders.ca for more information.
