Isla and I started fostering greyhounds in 2014, since then we have fostered 8 hounds. Some have stayed for months but most have found homes within a few weeks and we have only had one return customer. A testament to the GAP process of matching hounds to homes.
Each time we have a foster greyhound I always expect to find it difficult letting them go, but it becomes so easy when we get to know the family they are going to and can see how happy they will be there. That's not to say that we haven't been tempted to keep one or two of them of course but then we'd have no space left to foster any more! The ones that really stick in the memory however are the difficult cases, definitely the most frustrating but they also give the most pleasure when they get homed.
We enjoy getting the special cases and seem to have developed a reputation for success with them. This surprised us more than anyone because as far as we are concerned we don't do anything special. When a hound arrives with us we treat it as part of the family, not a temporary lodger. It receives the same treats, discipline and affection as our permanent dogs, although we do tailor the training to suit it's individual needs. A lot of that is trial and error, identifying causes and developing solutions but it is a logical process, there's no secret to it. It just takes consistency, the ability to approach a problem from different angles and to occasionally be able to think like a hound!
We love having foster hounds and encourage anyone else who thinks they might have the space to help out and take one on, it's great fun and rewarding too!
Pete, Isla & Apple