Since the Los Angeles wildfires began, many wonderful people have opened their homes to foster dogs and cats to help allievate shelters and rescue groups who are taking in animals from overburdened shelters. As a foster kitten mama, I wanted to share my best advice for anyone new to fostering cats.
There are many rescue groups in Los Angeles who are asking for temporary fosters to take in pets to help, per nonprofit Wings of Rescue, “to free up critical kennel space for pets displaced by the wildfires, giving evacuees the chance to reunite with their beloved pets.” Here’s a comprehensive guide to all animal rescues who need fosters now.
If You’re New to Fostering Cats
First, thank you so much for volunteering to foster. It’s a vital help to many wonderful organizations and it allows the cat to have some time outside of a shelter environment—and gets them ready for a future home.
My first bottle baby, Storm, who was two weeks old when we took him in.
Cats are creatures of habit. Big changes can be scary and hard for them. Understand that they might hide or hiss. It’s their only way to defend themselves in a new environment. Hannah Shaw (aka The Kitten Lady) has a wonderful webinar series on kitten care that she breaks down into several different videos. One of my favorite cat experts, Jackson Galaxy, has a great video on things to keep in mind when bringing a cat into your home. The video is geared toward adopting a cat, but all the principals remain the same.
Most shelters will give you the basic supplies for fostering, such as cat or kitten food, litter, and any medicines they need. If you need anything additional like toys, blankets, towels, and more, check your local Buy Nothing group. I’ve been fortunate to provide my fosters with so many fun toys that other cats have deemed “not interesting.”
If you have a cat or another pet at home, I would recommend keeping the animals separate until two weeks have passed. It’s mainly to make sure your foster doesn’t pass along any illnesses to your permanent pets.
Five Cat Products I Absolutely Loved
I started fostering kittens and cats in December 2023 and have gone through lots of different products. This list is what I’d recommend that have stood the test of time and endured more than 25 rowdy kittens!
1. Portable Foldable Cat & Dog Playpen
My foster kittens Zephyr and Zamboni love to hang out on top of the playpen
Some shelters will provide you with a playpen, but some will not. I purchased this one to house kittens and it’s held up. Some cheaper playpens will rip easily or lose zippers. I highly recommend this particular playpen because it’s very durable.
2. Covered Bed
Cats love a safe space to hide. I’ve found that covered beds help shy or scared kittens feel safe—and food helps them come out! Even my well-adjusted kittens love a covered bed to take long naps.
3. Shallow food bowls
Kittens need shallow food bowls to eat kibble or wet food. It’s best if the bowls are stainless steel because plastic can irritate their whiskers. After trying a few food bowls, I’ve found these stainless steel bowls with silicone mat to be the easiest to clean up and care for (shh! don’t tell the cats, but the mat has dog bone shapes on it!).
4. Kitten Toys
You don’t have to buy fancy toys. I’ve found that cardboard boxes with holes cut out in the sides are fun toys. I take toilet paper roll tubes and cut them up into rings. Even a pipe cleaner wound into a spiral is a favorite! Kitten Lady has a fantastic video on five DIY cat toys you can make.
5. Cat Scratcher
There are two foster kittens huddled up in the tunnel cat scratcher.
Cats need to scratch so providing a cat scratcher will help them not scratch up your furniture. I’ve found that all 25 of my foster kittens absolutely adore this Tunnel Cat Scratcher because they can hop on top to scratch or hide from their litter mate and pounce on them. It’s taken a beating, but is beloved by all.