[blendergirl7]

HI! My husband and I are considering becoming foster parents and I have some questions.

1. We have two big dogs (labs) and two cats – what kind of things do they look at with the animals? The dogs are indoor dogs and they shed like crazy, also, as much as I hate to admit it – they aren’t the best behaved dogs in the world – they are really friendly and the youngest one (about 8 months) tends to jump up on people – he is learning that it is bad, but he gets really excited to see people other than my husband and myself, because we don’t get visitors to our home that frequently. Also, would it matter if animal control has come to our house twice in the year that we have lived there because someone that lives behind us has complained about the dog barking too much? (He has had a bark collar since the day of animal controls first visit- we forgot to put the collar on him when they were back the second time)

2. We do not have any children, are there many foster parents that do not have children? At this time, we just want to foster children, but not adopt, are there many people that just foster?
3. I have been reading a lot about the respite care – if this is something I would consider does my schedule have to be extremely flexible?
4. My husband is currently in college, would it be possible for us to become foster parents and still allow him to have time to study? He is working on his bachelor’s degree right now, but he wants to go to Pharmacy school when he is done.
5. What do they look at when considering your finances? I work full-time, but my husband is not working while he is going to college, and I am wondering if that would be an issue. He is a disabled veteran, and we get money from the VA for that, along with his monthly stipend for the Vocational Rehabilitation program.
6. Do you have to be involved in a ton of activities to be considered for this? My husband and I aren’t really involved in that many activities, we mostly just like to spend time at home. We do go to my nephew’s games and school activities, but they are not in our local community. Also, we are not church-going people, would this matter?

I think that is all for now – I know I had more questions, but I can’t remember what they were. We have just recently started thinking of becoming foster parents, and I would just like more information.

Thanks in advance!

[kedougou]

Hello!
I am new to this as well and am about halfway through the classes. I am not sure about your dogs, but many people have pets and are approved, I know that you have to have shot records for your animals.
I wanted to tell you that I am a single women with no children and I haven't had any problems (other than being the only single person in the class, but I was expecting that). I am also a homebody and it has not been an issue. Many kids will do better in a home like yours where they can get one one one attention.
As far as finances, it is different in each state. In Kentucky they did not look at my income by itself, but if my income is enough to cover the bills. They also will contact two "financal references" to see if I am paying bills on time (water company, electric company, ect.).
Hope this has helped,
jess

[xxsurroundedbyxy]

Hey there. I thought I might could help some.

1. Depending upon who does your homestudy, the pets could be a problem. They may think it is too many, or a health concern for kids who may be allergic, or a hygenic issue since they are inside animals, and a fear factor since one dog does jump up on people and for little ones that can be a health hazard. There was a poster on here recently that was turned down for having what they thought was too many dogs.

2. Not having children will be a pro and con depending on the type of children you get. Siblings would be good since they would have each other to play with. If not, you will need to be willing to entertain little ones and have plenty of toys for different age ranges on hand. Books too. Like the previous poster, some kids will thrive on the extra attention you will give them without having to "share" you with other kids.

3. We NEED more respite homes and this is a great way to test the waters and see how fostering fits your lifestyle. You can choose who and when. Expect a lot of weekend requests though.

4. If you keep your numbers down, your husband's study time should not be cut too much.

5. Typically with finances, they will look to make sure your income is sufficient to pay your bills and that you will not have to rely on the board payment for bills.

6. We are homebodies too, but with kids we do go to the park, the local elementary school's playground, and bowling etc. Usually one every week or so and as a reward for good behavior and school work. We go to Sunday morning services and if your placement has a religious preference, some caseworkers and bioparents will expect you to respect that. HOWEVER, if you do respite care no one will expect for you to make sure you take them to services for that one weekend or so that you have them. It is basically babysitting for foster parents to give them a break and they will be so grateful!!

Hope that helps! You can PM me if you wish,

Kim

[Mkuhlmann06]

1. We have 2 dogs and 1 cat. My dogs are smaller than my cat, and do bark and jump around when people come. One way to help, would maybe to get 2 large cages that you can place the dogs in when you know people are arriving - including the SW for yoru home study visits. Advise the SW that the dogs can be bouncy/barking, but to help mitigate freight, you put them in a cage to settle down (or lock them in a certain part of the house?). You can use this when kids are first brought into the house as well. Allergy issues werent raised, as if they know a child is allergic to animals, they'll call a home that has no pets. (Yes, they don't always know until after a child is placed and in that case the children may need to be moved). You will have to show proof that ALL your animals are up to date on their shots. I don't think the animal control thing will matter. Quite honestly Idon't think they would check with them, but if the worker asks about the no bark collar, I'd explain why you have had to do that.

2. My husband and I did not have any children when we started. They definitely didn't look down on that, but did ask that we put a strong support network in place. We had a friend cleared as well, so she could babysit. We also got names of other FPs in the area.
There are families that just foster. There are many other families that foster, but if a child they feel fits in the family well becomes available for adoption, they will adopt. Then there are some other families looking for straight adoption.

3. Respite is something you can always be open to receive calls about, but you only have to take a placement (foster or respite) whenever you want to say yes. Respite is a great thing and Ive done, even while I was fostering. I knew I'd be using/needing it, so when possible I try to accept a respite placement here or there to help other parents get a break.

4. Definitely still possible to become foster parents while he's in school. He will need to take the foster training and so that may take some time away from studies. After certification, the time away from studies will be like any other family with kids and a parent going to school. His study time may need to move to later hours or be broken into smaller periods of time.

5. As for finances, they look to make sure you aren't going to use the foster stipend to cover your normal/monthly bills. You should be able to cover your bills now. The stipend is to help assist with the additionaly financial burden of taking in placements. We just filled out a form that showed our salary, and basically our budget (what do we spend on utilites, groceries, entertainment, etc). They didn't call anyone or any place for us, but would imagine they could have. Your husband not working would only be an issue if you could not survive (pay your bills) off the income you are receiving. Make sure you include his diasability as income, as it is a valid form of income.

6. No, you don't have to be involved in a ton of activities. Again, they try to fit kids and families. So if an agency knows a child or sibling set needs an active family, they will try to place with one. If they know other kids will need a lot of time for DR appointments, visits, etc, they may look for a family that doesn't have so many outside commitments. Again, when they call for a placement you can ask questions about the child/ren to see if they will fit in with your family. My DH and I do not attend church. However, when we were placed with 2 sisters, their bmom wanted them to attend church (any church). So I started taking the girls on Sat night, with my one friend who went. We'd make a night out of it (go to dinner, attend mass,e tc). So although the girls and I weren't necessarily fond of going, we pleased their mom and we tried to make it as entertaining as possible. My DH would stay home. Also, when certifying, they will ask you if you have a religious preference and if you would be willing to take in people of other religious beliefs.

My DH and I have been certified foster parents for over a year now. Please feel free to PM me with any questions. Good luck!

[kimb1005]

I can answer the pets part. We have 2 dogs--a Great Dane and an Irish setter. Now, my dogs are obedience trained so they're pretty good but they are big (esp. the Dane). The setter was a puppy when we were gettign approved and, sicne she tends to be on the hyper side-- I crated her until she settled down. We also have 3 cats, 2 birds and 2 rabbits. The SW didn't care about the pets as long as the house was clean and also felt that pets were good for any placements we might get. Allergies were raised and they told em we just wouldn't get placements who had known allergies. Shot records did have to be up to date.
Have you considered doign soem very basic obediecne work with the dogs --esp the hyper one. That might help with any concerns the SW might have. I second the crate idea.

[Tuppy]

We have two Olde English Mastiffs, 3 cats, 2 ferrets, 1 cockatiel, 1 hamster, 2 African Millipedes, 1 tarantula and 1 vinegaroon (whiptail scorpion). The latter two were caught by our 10 year old son!

We didn't have any issues regarding animals during our homestudy. Just had to have current vaccination records. Our house rather resembles one of those animal movies from the 60's that Disney put out.

The homestudy SW and the kid's CW all wanted to meet the animals, and even though our 6 mos. old OEM is a bit squirrelly, they could see that they were great with all of our childen.

[blendergirl7]

Thanks to everyone for the information. I contacted the department that does the certifications in our area to get more information, and they said the animals should not be too much of an issue because about 90% of the foster homes in our area have pets. I don't know about crating the puppy- he's adopted from the shelter and he was the biggest puppy at the humane society, but I think they had him in the smallest cage, so he does not like to be in small spaces. I think confining them to a room, or part of our basement when people come over would be the best option.
For now, I am reading all the books our the library has on foster parenting, and waiting for the information packet to come in the mail, so I can do some more reading.
Thanks Again!

[rottymom]

My dogs haven't been a problem. They do ask for vet records for immunization proof. Also, one thing I did in the past when my dogs were pups is I shut them in my room until they required to see the room. This was because my dogs were really excited when someone first comes in the door...but by the time we got around to introducing them they were calm.

About pet allergies...my now adopted daughter is allergic to pets. We did not know this until she had been with us eight months. After being to the doctor off and on so frequently we had her tested for allergies. She is on daily medication and the pets don't bother her anymore.