Foster A Shelter Animal

Enrich Their Lives and Yours!

Foster care volunteers provide temporary care for kittens, puppies, dogs and cats. Some animals may only need a home for several days, while others may need several months of care. By offering your time, energy, and home to an animal in need, you prepare an animal for adoption into a permanent home as well as prevent overcrowding in our shelter. The Sacramento SPCA is always looking for foster families to help save more animal lives.

Support and Resources to Help You

The Sacramento SPCA is there to help ensure your success in being a foster parent. We offer training, supplies, and help from our fully trained staff is just a phone call away.

Foster candidates are carefully matched with foster homes according to the candidate's special needs and the foster parent's abilities. Whether you work full time or you are often at home, there may be a foster placement appropriate for you.

We recommend that foster parents keep their own companion animals isolated from their foster animals. A separate room or enclosed area with no carpet will work best. For example, a spare bathroom or laundry room is an excellent place to foster a cat or kittens.

Ready to Be a Foster Parent?

1. Complete, print out, sign, and mail the Volunteer Application. You can fill out and print this form online or download a blank packet. (304 Kb, PDF)
2. Complete, print out, sign, and mail the Foster Parent Supplemental Application (260 Kb, PDF)
   (You need the free Adobe Acrobat Reader to open both documents.)
3. Mail, fax, or drop off both documents to:

   Foster Parent Applications
   Sacramento SPCA
   6201 Florin-Perkins Road
   Sacramento, CA 95828
   Fax: (916) 383-7062
   (We cannot accept Foster Parent Applications over our web site or email.)

4. Attend a Foster Parent Training Session. After we receive your application, a staff member will contact you to schedule a Foster Training Session. We recommend that you also attend a New Volunteer Orientation. This is an excellent way to check out other volunteer opportunities at the Sacramento SPCA.