Temporary (emergency) foster families wanted for dogs and cats!

ACE|SHIN Charity is urgently looking for families who want to temporarily take in dogs and cats – both regularly and in emergency situations.

Temporary fostering significantly increases our four-legged friends' chances of adoption. Many people are interested in a dog or cat from our organization, but often don't dare adopt a dog or cat directly from Spain without seeing it.

There are also times when animals urgently need a safe haven—for example, due to unexpected adoption problems or medical situations. In such cases, emergency foster families are vital. As an emergency foster family, you are the safe haven where a dog or cat can rest and relax. You not only help them through a difficult time, but you also give them a much greater chance of permanent adoption.

As a (emergency) foster parent, you are the crucial link between our shelter and the potential adopter. You enable them to visit their dog or cat, which is very important to many people. During this meeting, you can also provide all sorts of information about your foster dog or cat.

Fostering can make the difference between a long(er) stay in the shelter, or even a return, or a quick, happy home! It can also mean the difference between life and death, because every dog ​​or cat that goes into foster care or is adopted at our shelter in Spain gives place to another dog in need of our help.

Fostering requires love, attention, dedication, and sometimes even perseverance, as well as an extra plate at the table because your foster pet eats with you at your expense. Depending on the type of foster care, veterinary costs may be (partially) covered.

Are you able to offer a warm and safe place to an ACE dog or cat temporarily until we have found a suitable home?

Then you can send an email to our teams, and we will contact you as soon as possible.
Shelter dog: herplaatsing.nederland@ace-charity.org
Shelter cat: ingeborg.joossen@ace-charity.org

Which dogs are eligible for fostering?

In principle, all dogs are eligible for shelter. There are actually four different options for reception:

Pups
Taking care of a puppy requires a lot of effort and attention. After all, the dog still has to learn everything. If a puppy is eligible for shelter, this will only be possible after castration / sterilization in Spain. This is currently done at an age of approx. 4-5 months. The dogs come to the Netherlands medically checked, in the unlikely event that a vet visit is necessary, we ask the foster families to be willing to pay the costs themselves. If there are really big things going on, this will always have to be looked at in consultation and we understand that we cannot expect a foster family to bear those costs.

Young dogs from one to three years old
We especially like to see dogs that are easy to place between about one and three years old go to shelter, because they would have been adopted much faster if they had been in a Dutch shelter.
These dogs are of course spayed/neutered, vaccinated and also tested negative for diseases, so the risk of a visit to the vet is very small. The dogs come to the Netherlands medically checked, in the unlikely event that a vet visit is necessary, we ask the foster families to be willing to pay the costs themselves. If there are really big things going on, this will always have to be looked at in consultation and we understand that we cannot expect a foster family to bear those costs.

Older dogs or dogs with a disability or illness (e.g. Leishmania)
Sometimes we are asked whether it is possible to take in an older dog or a dog that has less chance of adoption due to a disability, illness or carrier status of, for example, Leishmania.

Taking care of such a dog is of course possible, but it should be taken into account that more medical costs may occur. In that case, these vet costs are in principle for the account of the shelter, because we then no longer have the option to keep him/her under treatment from our own vet in Spain. We regret that as a non-profit organization we cannot bear the costs of the Dutch veterinarians.
If the dog needs medication, we can give it when the dog arrives and also (when necessary) provide you with medication from Spain at our expense.

Redeployers
It can also happen that, for various reasons, an already adopted dog has to be rehomed. In such a case we strive to let the dog stay with the current adopters as long as possible and from there to look for new adopters. Unfortunately, sometimes this is not possible, for example due to the death or illness of an adopter. If such a rehomer would suit your situation, we would very much like to appeal to you in consultation with the question whether you want to temporarily take care of this dog. In this case, any veterinary costs will be reimbursed in consultation.

What do we expect from the shelter?

We pay a lot of attention to the before and aftercare when placing our dogs. The welfare of the dog is paramount. In addition to offering love, patience, socialization, rest and care, the shelter also has the important task of observing the dog's behavior and further socializing the dog. Your findings certainly count towards finding the right owners.

What happens after a dog is placed in shelter?

When the shelter dog has been chosen – unless it is a rehoming dog – it will come to the Netherlands or Belgium, where a volunteer from our organization will hand over your shelter dog at the place of arrival. You give the dog the chance to acclimatize and relax. During this period, a good picture of the dog's character and behavior is created. We expect you to share all the nice, but also less nice things with us, that you regularly take pictures and provide us with as much information and pictures as possible in order to get a good picture of the dog.
Our organization finds it important that the right match is made between owner and dog and pays a lot of attention to this. This means that for some dogs we find an adoption address very quickly and for others it can take a little longer.

What are we looking for?

We are looking for people (singles/couples/families) who:

• love dogs
• not work full time
• be stress resistant and flexible
• have a great sense of responsibility
• have (some) experience with dogs
• (if there are children they must know how to handle dogs)

We ask a lot, we are aware of that! However, we want the best for our dogs and the dog always comes first for us. We understand that it can sometimes be quite a challenge. But it gives so much satisfaction to see a dog who has lived with you in shelter, happy with his new owner(s).

What is the procedure if you register as a shelter for one of our dogs?

If you sign up as a shelter for one of our dogs, we will send you a questionnaire. After you have completed this and returned it, we will contact you by telephone.

After a positive telephone conversation, we will visit you for an intake interview, where we would like to get to know you and any family members. In such a meeting, matters such as your living and living conditions are discussed and we inform you extensively about what you can expect from (the behavior of) a shelter dog. Together we will determine which form of childcare suits you best. And of course you will have the opportunity to ask questions and indicate which form of childcare you would like to register for.

After the intake interview, both parties have time to consider whether or not to cooperate. If you start working as a reception, a reception agreement will be drawn up.

Do you care about the welfare of dogs and think you can provide a loving shelter for one of our dogs? Please contact us at: