Dog Fostering Terms and Conditions

Welcome to the team! This contract means that you have been approved by Rescue Me Animal Sanctuary as an official Rescue Me dog fosterer. By agreeing to this foster contract you will be required to foster the dog in your care until a permanent home is found by Rescue Me Animal Sanctuary.

The dog that you will foster has been assessed and has been matched to make sure you are a suitable home. If at any point you are struggling to care for the dog you must inform us and we will be able to support you.

You understand that Rescue Me Animal Sanctuary will remain the legal owner of the dog and that you are fully responsible for the dog whilst in your care.

We will aim to provide you with as much food as we can, you may need to purchase some yourself at your own cost if you are unable to pick up from one of the rescue co-ordinators or they are unable to drop off.  

If you decide that you want to adopt the dog you must inform Rescue Me Animal Sanctuary ASAP, you CANNOT decide to adopt the animal if he/she is already reserved to a member of the public.

You must not sell/give away the dog to ANYONE else, unless via adoption contract arranged through Rescue Me Animal Sanctuary.

You should avoid flooding/ over stimulating your foster dog especially for the first few days. This means that you should avoid walking the dog, meeting too many people, crowding over the dog or anything else that the dog may find overwhelming.

Unless otherwise specified, the dog must not be introduced to any children under the age of 18.

Whilst on a walk the dog must remain on a lead at all times (retractable leads must not be used) . If the dog is let off the lead and an incident happens then you will be held accountable.

Whilst on a walk the dog must be wearing a collar that has Rescues Me’s contact details on. 

The dog must not be left unattended for long periods of time where it could cause the dog distress. 

You must assure that the dog gets daily exercise that is sufficient to the size, age and breed of the dog.

If we have advised that the dog needs to wear a muzzle then a muzzle must be worn at all times whilst on a walk. If you allow the dog to be walked without a muzzle and an incident happens you will be held accountable.

If the dog has been identified as a flight risk then the dog must wear both a lead and a collar using two leads; one attached to the collar and one attached to the harness.

You must inform us if you are struggling to handle the dog on walks. This could be if the dog is too strong on the lead, if you are having any difficulties with the muzzle or any other issues or concerns you may have. We will be able to provide you with equipment and support from the staff team to help.

You must inform us as soon as possible if you notice any behavioural problems. The sooner you inform us the quicker we will be able to help resolve the issue and advice strategies to help manage the issue.

When traveling in a vehicle, the dog must be kept suitably restrained using either a dog crate or a seatbelt. It is illegal to drive with an unrestrained dog.

You must use positive only training methods. Negative reinforcement must not be used including any physical punishment. If you have any queries about training methods please contact us.

If you notice any sign of illness you must inform us immediately. The dog must use the Rescue Me veterinary clinic unless discussed with ourselves. If an alternative veterinary practice is used without our authorisation, Rescue Me will not cover the costs.

All poisonous and hazardous foods/ objects must be kept away from the dog (these include but not limited to medication, chocolate, grapes etc). 

Please inform us of any vacations you have booked in plenty of time for us to arrange for the rescue animal to be cared for by someone else.

Please provide good quality information about the rescue animals personality/homing needs so that Rescue Me Animal Sanctuary can advertise the animal for a suitable home. 

Please make yourself reasonably available to potential adopters to assist with the rehoming process.  Animals are NOT rehomed without homechecks.  On the first meet and greet, potential adopters cannot adopt the animals that day unless a homecheck has been done and passed by Rescue Me Animal Sanctuary prior to the meet and greet.

All adoption forms are completed online by us. The dog you are fostering cannot leave your care unless you have confirmed with us that the adopters have completed the adoption forms. 

The animal cannot leave your care unless the new adopters have a non retractable  lead, harness, collar with a tag and a seatbelt or crate.

Rescue Me Animal Sanctuary can remove the above rescue animal from your care at ANY time if we see fit to do so. 

Foster carers are not permitted to provide dog-sitting or temporary boarding for adopters. Our fostering capacity is limited and must remain available for dogs in urgent need of placement. Using foster homes for dog-sitting reduces our ability to take in and care for vulnerable animals.

If you have any worries/concerns/questions please contact us straight away!