My First Foster Experience!
Hello Muddy Paws Pack! My name is Gina, and this is the story of my very first foster.
It was a Friday night before my first foster pickup at Muddy Paws — I couldn’t contain my excitement! I started to scroll through my phone to make sure I had enough storage, as I knew I’d be taking endless pictures of my resident dog, Sir, and my new foster puppy, Lexie. Little did I know Sir would make this experience quite challenging.
Sir and Lexie.
Luckily, transport could not have gone smoother. As soon as I brought Lexie home, I put her right into a good bath, snuggled her, and allowed her to get comfortable before taking her downstairs. As I brought Lexie downstairs to Sir, I held her in my arms so she could feel safe (and so Sir could get a good sniffin’!).
Once I let Lexie out of my arms, Sir got excited—a bit too excited. He wouldn’t let Lexie walk a few steps without enticing her to play. Keep in mind: Sir was 9 months old and 50lbs, while Lexie was 3 months and only 10lbs! Fortunately, Sir wasn’t showing any signs of aggression (although his mouth was about half the size of her body!). He was just excited! This behavior went on for hours, which quickly turned into days. I immediately knew I had to reach out to my Foster Buddy and the Muddy Paws team.
I decided that for me, giving up wasn’t an option; I wanted to make sure Lexie would be in the right environment. I immediately knew I had to make a safe space for her aside from the crate, so that night I set up a playpen around her crate so that she felt safe and could still have enough room to play and be a puppy. However, although this playpen was a great little spot for her, I also wanted her to be able to explore my home and get really socialized with my kiddies!
Unfortunately, that meant putting Sir in his crate. I felt torn because Sir was my dog—but at the same time, he needed to learn. The first few days were a bit overwhelming, especially because Sir is a gentle giant, and crating him was certainly the last thing I expected I’d have to do. Thankfully, I had an overwhelming amount of support from Muddy Paws while navigating this. I really couldn’t imagine any other rescue being so wonderful, positive, and helpful. Through MPR, I was able to get such important advice; they even set up a virtual training experience for me with Calm Canine Academy!
As time went on, Sir thankfully calmed down. It took him a good 5-6 days, but we got there! I learned that I really need to see what the best fit is for him—maybe it’s a slightly older puppy, perhaps it’s a male pup, a dog that’s older than Sir, or maybe just a slower introduction. I can’t wait to keep fostering to find that out!
Through speaking to different fosters and doing lots of research, I know that next time around I will definitely be doing things slightly differently and adding little kickers! I would like to introduce my foster pup in the crate and use certain toys to help relax both dogs. Muddy Paws’s trainer shared with me a great way to calm and stimulate their minds: hide treats in a bin full of goodies and let them go searching! She also reminded me that Sir is still a puppy himself, so it may take him a while to keep calm.
If any foster out there is having trouble acclimating their pups, my advice is to stay patient and positive. You will absolutely get through it—and it will be so rewarding! Your resident dog and your foster dog will have a ton of pictures together in no time.
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UPDATE: After Lexie was paired with her forever home, I fostered a new pup, Carbone. Compared to Sir’s initial meeting with Lexie, this was like day and night!
Carbone and Sir.
This time around, I put Carbone in his crate to introduce them—that was absolutely the way to go! This method certainly ensured Sir that the house was still “his.” After I introduced Sir and Carbone face-to-face, it was amazing. When Sir would get a little nutty, I’d whip out any type of boredom busters—Lickimats filled with peanut butter and even laundry baskets stuffed with treats for them to find!
Sir and Carbone got along like a dream, and I can't wait to keep fostering and introducing Sir to more furry friends!
Gina is a Muddy Paws foster. You can follow her foster adventures on Instagram at @gina_bosco!
Looking to foster? See more info here.
