We immediately took Lewis to see the vet and had him tested and vaccinated with his first set of shots. 

Afterward, we sent him home went with our wonderful, tried and tested fosters, Maddy Perrault and Brian,  a couple that has fostered kittens for MHC the last few seasons. 

Maddy gave him the name Lewis. They kept Lewis safe in their home and made sure he grew up to be a happy and healthy young cat. Being in their home, Lewis was exposed to other cats, which helped to get him properly socialized and ready for adoption. 

When his neuter appointment came, his wonderful foster parents took him to the vet and right back home so that he can rest and heal from the surgery. 

Lewis was a guest in their home for about a month. After the foster period, he was 100% ready for adoption. He was promptly transferred to a kennel in the Adoption Center inside PetSmart in Midland  so that he could find his forever home. 

Lucky for him, Lewis was only up for adoption for ONE HOUR. With his striking looks, and talkative personality - he didn't have to stay in a kennel for very long. A family walked in looking to add another cat to their family. They already had a cat named Bruce, also from MHC, so we knew that Lewis was going home to another household that is filled with love for cats. 

As for Lewis' former fosters, they have already taken two more foster kittens into their home because they were anxious to help again. 

Fostering saves lives. Pet Fosters like Maddy & Brian, allow us to save more young pets like Lewis. Thank you so much for your lifesaving work!  

Sign up to become a Cat Foster -- we especially need more fosters during Kitten Season. Learn more about what it takes to be a foster: www.midlandhumane.org/Foster

An understated benefit of fostering is that you get to spend time with the pet in your care and get to know them very well!  It's truly a win-win situation!

The gorgeous photos of Lewis below were from his foster, Maddy. ​They also sent in their notes about Lewis during his stay: 

• He’s the most playful kitty. Very self sufficient and needy at the same time. Knows his name and when you say no. 
• He hasn’t learned to jump on counters but wants to sit by your feet or talk to you.
• He’s good with other pets. Learned how to hiss from our cats and he really stood up for himself/patient with them coming around.
• He can be quiet sometimes and wants to sneak out of the house. We had to watch the front and back door religiously.
• Best cuddle buddy with us and our cats. He’s going to make a family really happy!

Torres sprung into action and collected the puppies to bring them to a safe environment as soon as possible — her own home. 

The puppies needed to go into a foster home first because they were too young and weak to be placed in the Adoption Center inside PetSmart. More importantly, they were completely unvetted. 

MHC put out a call for fosters right away, but with very young puppies, it usually takes time to find the right foster match. With some rescue cases — time really is of the essence and is the difference between life and death. 

With no foster home available yet, Torres stepped up and provided all three puppies with an impromptu “foster home”, which became the first stop in their journey to forever homes. This was something she knew she probably had to do when she first took the puppies in.

As their foster parent, Torres was able to assess their health and condition, allow them to decompress from any trauma, as well as keep them quarantined from the other adoptable pets until they were fully vetted. All this was done with support from MHC. 

“They were not acting at all like puppies. They made no noises and barely moved,”observed Torres of the puppies when she first got them settled in.

Isolation is a key stage to keeping all rescued pets safe, so diseases and parasites are not spread among the population. With rescues picked up straight from the streets, you never can tell the conditions they are in at first glance so it is imperative that they go into a quarantine period. 

Upon further observation, Torres discovered the puppies were infested by ticks and fleas. 

“I immediately got a bath ready for them because I noticed some fleas on them, but I quickly realized the fleas were even worse than I thought. My boyfriend and I were up until 2 a.m. picking fleas off of them,” recalls Torres who, as MHC Staff, was well acquainted with the process of dealing with various pet afflictions. 

With care and treatment, they soon got the flea and tick situation under control. 

Once the puppies settled into their foster home and got the necessary attention they so desperately needed, they started opening up and becoming very lively. 
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“Kelly is the biggest of the sister, extremely outgoing, talkative, and loves attention. Jill is the smallest of the three even though she is small she makes up for it with her attitude and voice, she believes she is the top dog and is not afraid to take on the others and she loves food. Sabrina is the middle sister; she is very calm and laid back but loves cuddling,” shares Torres, who enjoyed getting to know the foster puppies while they were in her care. 
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THE BITTERSWEET INCIDENT OF A  FOSTER FAIL
(Foster to Adopt)

Because fosters helped out and opened up their homes, these puppies have survived the worst are now healthier and happier. 

It took a while, but eventually, another foster home opened up for Kelly and Jill. After the routine “Meet & Greet”, the new foster quickly declared their intentions to adopt the two puppies. She would foster them throughout the vetting (vaccinations and spay surgeries) and then she would adopt them officially right after. 

Sabrina, on the other hand, had unknowingly been in her forever home all along. Torres had grown very fond of this particular puppy and thought she belonged with her family. 

"I have 2 male dogs that are high energy and can be rambunctious but Sabrina calms them down and she fits right into our little pack,” says Torres. 

“FOSTER FAIL", a lighthearted, affectionate term used to describe when a foster pet parent permanently adopts the dog or cat, is one of the reasons we are constantly looking for new foster homes. Oftentimes, when foster homes take rescues in temporarily, they end up falling in love with them.

It is a bittersweet incident when we say goodbye to a foster home... as they welcome a pet into their forever home. 

And so begins our hunt for new foster homes again and again. 

Do you want to help save lives of countless pets? Become a pet foster! MHC will provide everything - vaccinations, surgeries, vet care, food and supplies - you need to take care of a pet. 
All you need is to open up your home to a pet in need - perhaps temporarily or perhaps for as long as you’d like. 
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Learn more about MHC’s Pet Foster Program:  www.midlandhumane.org/foster

What made you decide to foster a pet?
I bought a house with a large empty backyard so I started thinking about getting a dog but wasn't sure of the commitment of one since I had never own one by myself, just the family pet growing up.  I looked at the dogs that were available at the shelter when my friend sent me the Instagram post of Midland Humane Coalition needing a foster for Ellie (then known as Roxanne).  I loved her picture and realized fostering would be a better option for me as I could give this puppy a home until she was ready to be put up for adoption.  Fostering gave us an opportunity to get to know each other and bond, and see if my home and my life would be right for her with the support of the Midland Humane Coalition.  

​How long did you foster Ellie? 
I fostered Ellie for a month.  We waited till she had all her shots, and her spaying and then we were able to make the adoption official.

What were the benefits of being a pet foster? 
There were lots of benefits I found when fostering Ellie with MHC. Since I wanted a puppy but was still unaware of the commitment, I was able to foster Ellie with the support of the ladies at MHC and learn all the commitments and her needs with their guidance.  They were always available for questions and tips.  I knew if something crazy happened or there was an emergency, I would have support while I was a foster for Ellie (luckily nothing went wrong and only smooth sailing!).  Even now after the adoption, every time we got to Petsmart, Ellie first wants to go say hi to her friends who helped her at the MHC Adoption Center!

​What made you decide to adopt your foster pet? 
It took me about 10 minutes into fostering Ellie that I decided I wanted to keep her but the sensible side of me knew we still needed to make sure it was the right fit.  It did not take long after for us to both feel like a family! Ellie is a Rottweiler/German Shepard/Australian Shepard mix, our best guess! I love her playful and quirky personality.  She loves people and just melts when she gets pets.  Ellie thinks everyone is here just to pet her and love on her!  But it isn't in a needy way, more of a she is just so grateful to be in a warm safe home and wants to make up for not getting loves the first four months of her life.  She also has a pretty calm personality and isn't wild like a puppy so it fit perfect in my life since it's just me to entertain her.  She became best fur friends with my parents' dog who is also a rescue and they can play together for hours.  Her fur is so soft, I can sit and pet her forever.  She has very big paws and she has that puppy clumsiness. Ellie loves to meet new people and explore new things.  

Tell us about life before and after Ellie 
 Before Ellie, I always loved dogs and being around them but never had one on my own.  I have a big family and a few dogs in the family. Like I said earlier, I have this huge lonely backyard that was screaming for a dog to fill it! 

Now I got Ellie, it is filled with a lot more love and entertainment. I am so happy I decided to adopt her and we are already making lots of memories together.  We love to go on walks together, and started the training classes at Petsmart.  She keeps life interesting and me on my toes.  She luckily hasn't gotten into any usually crazy puppy mischief. 

Ellie has done a great job fitting into my life and enjoying the things I like to do so now we do them all together,  like hanging out with friends, traveling, going out for lunch, and watch dog documentaries (those are her favorites!!) You can tell she is just so grateful to have a loving family. 

​There is the commitment side I am learning, not able to leave her alone for long, talking her to the vet, not able to just go off and do whatever whenever, luckily potty training wasn't too bad with her as she was already halfway trained but there was cleaning up accidents, she enjoyed her kennel so that wasn't an issue.  All the puppy difficulties and commitments, Ellie was worth it.  She is great company for me and looks like a protector (be softy though).  I have loved my two months with Ellie so far and everything we have gotten to do together.  

​The story below was shared by Margaret Leavitt, Jax's former foster mom and new forever family

In January, we had to say goodbye to our beloved Weimaraner, Sam. Our family was crushed, but we were worried about our Pit Bull, Harley. Sam had taught Harley to be a great dog, and we could see that she was lost without him. It was too early for us, but we knew Harley needed a friend. We also needed a new dog to help us heal from Sam's death.

We reached out to Cheryl at Midland Humane Coalition for a dog that may fit our needs. She was surprised that we were searching for a dog, because we mainly rescue cats. We weren't particular of breed, or age, but we needed a cat friendly dog.

She thoughtfully considered Jax, but asked if we'd like to foster him as he was being vetted. We had only fostered rescue kittens, but we figured we'd give it a try.

When we picked him up, he was by himself in the play area at Petsmart.  When we saw Jax, he stopped, stared at us, and then started to jump around. It was like he knew we were there for him.

Harley made friends with Jax quickly, so after only about 3 weeks, we adopted him. Although our foster period was short, it gave us time to find out if Jax was the right dog for our family. I would recommend fostering to anyone who is considering adoption.

Our home is complete once again now that Jax is in it. He adds so much to our lives, but mostly unconditional love.

THANK YOU, Margaret, for welcoming Jax to your home - temporarily and then permanently!

Want to foster cats & dogs and help us save lives? You provide a temporary home, we provide everything else! Learn about MHC's PET FOSTER CARE PROGRAM. ​

​The story below was shared by Cheryl Ives, MHC Adoption Center Staff member,  Tiny Tim's former Foster Mom and new Forever Family 

Tiny Tim has made a perfect addition to our family and pack of “littles”.  As a rescuer, I am drawn to the underdog and that is why I was drawn to Tim with his bad knees and his constant pain.

However, the timing wasn’t exactly the best to take on another dog. You see, I wasn’t in my own home and we had just lost our big dog, Trixie, who died of old age during the days of COVID.

I initially fought bringing him home because of this. It was actually my husband who kept asking about Tiny Tim and saying "just bring him home".

Timmy was very stressed in the kennel environment and he was biting some of the staff members. It really did take him a good three months to feel totally safe in our home. He’s really settled in now and even plays with the other dogs.

Tim is a really fun, playful dog and we really enjoy his little antics. He loves to chase a ball and now he uses his legs more and doesn’t have to be carried out for breaks. He really has brought joy to us in these trying times. I would encourage anyone to take home a special needs animal as it can be very fulfilling. It certainly has been for us!

 

How did you pick Tiny Tim?  And what made you decide to adopt him?
Sometimes they just pick you!! We did not intend to keep Tiny Tim, but after no one stepped up that really would care for him the way we knew we could, we decided to put a deadline of December 24 on him and my husband and I agreed that he would have a forever family with us if no one adopted him. 

Why December 24?
I planned to adopt Tiny Tim on Christmas Eve this year because that was his drop off date in 2019 and we had not found anyone that was a good fit for him that is really committed to his care. 

What advice/tips would you give people who are thinking about adopting a special needs dog or cat? 
Really, I would just say not to shy away from the special needs animals. They can adapt and compensate for any deficits. I used to have a blind cat and she made a wonderful pet. Her sense of smell was so keen and you wouldn’t really know she was blind. All they really need is a routine and a lot of love. 
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