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How I Became a Foster by
MAGRR Foster Doug Thompson
In the summer of 2005 fellow
employees pulled into my work parking lot to find a filthy golden
retriever lying in a small puddle in the parking lot that had been left
by the sprinkler system. Being less than 100 yards from Germantown
Parkway (a very busy road), there was substantial concern for him. By
the time I made it to the office, other employees had brought him inside
and got him a bowl of water. Since I had a dog of my own (half golden
and half lab), and a large fenced back yard, I offered to take him home
while we attempted to find the owner. We ran an ad in the paper, put a
poster up at the corner store, and drove adjoining neighborhoods looking
for lost dog signs, but after a week no one claimed this boy. He was a
good dog at my house, but did not have the energy level of my Sandy and
she wanted him to play. That is when someone at work suggested MAGRR.
I called and told them the story.
"Are you interested in keeping him?"
they asked. "No" I replied. "Would you be interested in fostering him
until we find him a home?" This sounded like a reasonable request, so I
said "If he was a younger dog who wanted to play with my dog I might be
interested, but he doesn't seem to have the energy to play." "Oh, we
have lots of dogs that want to play" was the response. I
should have seen it coming! She asked if we would consider becoming a
foster family for MAGRR, so I sat down with my wife and two boys to
discuss it. We discussed the different types of scenarios which lead
dogs to MAGRR and how if there are not foster families, they will still
get adopted but would have to stay boarded and in a cage until they
are. We realized that these dogs need love more than anything during
this period, and although it would be tough to have a dog live with us
and then watch it go would no doubt be sad, it would be something very
nice we could do not only for the dog, but for the eventual adopter. So
we decided to become a foster family.
Fourteen dogs later we are glad we
did. Due to the nature of Goldens, they have all been sweet; and we
have enjoyed watching them "come out of their shell" as they receive the
love of our family. Sandy enjoys having new playmates come and go; and
although there have been a couple that were especially special to us we
have sent each to loving families. Our boy's neighborhood friends
always come to see the new foster dogs and often when the adopted family
comes to get the dog; the neighborhood kids come down to say bye. I
sincerely believe that our family and our friends all benefit from the
fostering experience. Not only do we get to love some great dogs, but
we are able to tell potential adopters about the individual
characteristics and nature of each foster. Many of our adoptive
families stay in touch for a while after adoption and we get wonderful
pictures and e-mails about them.
People still tell me they could not
be a foster because they could not part with a dog after becoming
attached to it; which I fully understand, but if you look at all the
benefits to the dog, it is very rewarding to help and be happy when they
go to a great permanent family.
Thanks to James and Donita, great
friends and dog lovers; who take Sandy and our foster each time we go
out of town and can't take them. And for the two we miss the most;
Boomer lives with a great family outside of Little Rock AR with acreage
and a lake; and Conway (now Baxter) lives in Maine and is a trail dog to
a wonderful family who helps maintain the Appalachian Trail. What lucky
dogs they are!!! Knowing our fosters go to such wonderful homes, makes
it all worthwhile.
Doug Thompson
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 Autumn
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