About Fostering

About Fostering

The LA Animal Services Foster program is for kittens, puppies, cats and adult dogs. As long as you can give some love and time to these orphaned animals, any animal you take in will benefit from foster care! For pets, there is no place like home, even if it's only for a couple of days or a few months. Fostering allows our canine companions and feline friends to thrive in a home setting where they are less stressed and can benefit from additional socialization. So whether you're a dog person or a cat person, LA Animal Services has a fostering opportunity for you!

Steps to Foster

If you have the time and can allocate some space in your home for puppies or kittens, here are the steps to follow:

  1. Identify one to three animals you may want to foster by viewing the animals on our website and get their Animal ID number or A# (example:A1234567)
  2. Email the Lifesaving/Foster Liaison at ani.foster@lacity.org with your completed foster application (if you have not fostered before) with:
    • the Animal ID number(s) of the pets you want to meet.
    • Please select one and only one shelter location on your application. (You will still be able to foster from any location regardless of what you select)
    • A scan or photo of your current photo ID. If your current address is not shown on the ID, please also include another form of address verification (picture of mail received, utility bill, etc.)
  3. We will call you once your application is reviewed to schedule an appointment.

Already an approved foster? Please contact your lifesaving or volunteer liaison. 

Invite an Adorable Kitten or Puppy Into Your Home

Each year, kittens and puppies are born with no one to take care of them. Most humane organizations cannot take care of underage puppies and kittens because they do not have the personnel to provide the special attention for these little ones. They need people who are willing to raise the puppies and kittens until they are 8 to 10 weeks old when they can be returned to the shelter to be spayed or neutered and placed in permanent homes.

At LA Animal Services, our ability to take in these abandoned animals is directly dependent on the number of reliable foster volunteers we have waiting to take these babies home to raise. We believe foster homes are the future of lifesaving. The more foster volunteers we have, the more lives we can save.

Click here to download our Short Term Fostering Flyer!

A Labor of Love

Our foster volunteers are a rugged group of very caring people who do everything from bottle feeding orphaned babies around the clock, to socializing little ones to ensure that they look forward to human and animal interaction. The foster volunteers provide care, safety and love.

    It will be a labor of love that will leave you with great memories to cherish long after your foster animals have been placed into permanent loving homes.

    Training Provided

    LA Animal Services will offer you as much training as you need. Help from our staff is just a phone call away. Each of our fosters parents are given training which may be quite short if you’re wanting to foster an adult dog who desperately needs to get out of the busy, noisy and many times frightening shelter environment, or longer if you need to be trained in Baby Bottle Feeding of kittens or puppies.

    Not only does our foster program maximize the number of animals rescued and saved, it allows LA Animal Services to care for animals who would be difficult to care for in our shelter environment-orphaned or shy kittens or dogs needing one-on-one behavior rehabilitation. For animals who may need a break from the sometimes crazy shelter environment, foster care provides a comfortable home setting that keeps these foster companions happy and healthy. And now YOU have the opportunity to involve yourself in this lifesaving mission.

    Virtually Foster a Pet with Your Organization

    LA Animal Services would love to have your school, office, company, or business become a virtual foster of one of our animals!

    You'll place these pets in your marketing materials and on your social media platforms. They can become team mascots, office dogs or cats, or become an organizational goal to get the fostered pet adopted.

    We'll share your information in the pet's profile, on our social media platforms and our website.

    Sign up today at laanimalservices.com/virtualfoster

    We look forward to hearing from you!

    Foster Resources

    Foster parenting can be more flexible than other volunteer jobs that require people to show up for a specific shift during limited times of the day and for a committed length of time. LA Animal Services Foster program is flexible, fun and rewarding once you’re learned how to take care of your temporary companion animals! Here are more resources for first-time foster parents.

    Kitten Care Handbook

    Essential Information for the care of kittens 8 weeks of age and under. Download our Kitten Bottle Baby Care Manual.

    Fostering Puppies Information

    The successful rearing of motherless puppies requires a regular schedule of appropriate feedings, elimination, playing and sleeping, all in a safe and healthy environment. Learn to adequately care for puppies

    Thank you to our lifesaving partners who help us care for #LACityPets