The afternoon before the shelter-in-place order went into effect with little advance notice, I witnessed something extraordinary at Marin Humane. A flurry of appeals were sent to volunteers and staff, asking for urgent help. The mission: get as many of our animals out of the shelter and into safe, loving foster homes as quickly as possible.
Just picture this scenario: hundreds of animals in limbo for weeks, if not months, with nowhere to go, and no volunteers to walk and play with them. No way were we going to let that happen. Over the span of just a few hours, our animal residents left the shelter and went into loving, experienced foster homes. A stately orange kitty here, a nervous bunny or two there. Who would take the young, energetic, 54-pound shepherd mix on such short notice? Or the shy Chihuahua rescued from a hoarding situation? What about the two mice?
As kennels emptied, only a handful of animals remained: those that need specialized medical care or were otherwise unable to leave just yet. Among the pets still at Marin Humane was a small tan dog named Simon, a nervous corgi mix that had lost his longtime family just 48 hours before. Overwhelmed and on edge, he wasn’t handling the transition well, and our behavior and training team knew that keeping him in a kennel for weeks would only make it worse. He needed to go to a home ASAP, and his options were limited. I’d already agreed to foster two guinea pigs (an easy sell, since I adore guinea pigs), but a dog with potential behavior issues?
I agreed to meet Simon to see if we were the right fit for each other (as though I could have possibly said no after looking into those sweet, dark eyes). It hadn’t been a normal day at work by any stretch, but I surely didn’t expect to load up the old Prius with two guinea pigs, a dog, a ton of supplies and a barn’s worth of hay.
Simon paced unceasingly that first evening at my home, being faced with yet another big and scary change in his life. But soon enough, he settled down — first on the rug, and then the dog bed I’d placed in front of the fireplace. During a time of unprecedented stress and upheaval, he’s helped tether me to a routine, which includes regular walks in the park (at a safe social distance from others). I’m grateful to be able to work from home and have this goofy dog for companionship, whether he tries to shove his head onto my open laptop, or dutifully alerts me every time a delivery truck makes the rounds in the neighborhood. More often than not, his snoring provides a pleasant background sound to my typing.
Molly Foley, one of my coworkers who also took a foster dog home that day, feels similarly.
“Fostering is a very rewarding experience,” she says. “We foster dogs that are shy and shut down, and bringing them into our home allows them to flourish.”
Her COVID-19 foster, Benson, came from a hoarding situation and initially refused to eat or go outside. Luckily, that’s changed.
“After two weeks with us, he is eating like a champ and loves going on walks. Having a dog during the shelter in place has had an extra benefit as well,” she says. “My 14-year-old son, Nic, has taken primary responsibility for him. Benson sleeps with Nic and he is the one walking and feeding him. It’s been a good opportunity to teach him responsibility while he’s home from school.”
The future feels uncertain and overwhelming at the moment for all of us. For now, I’ll try to take a cue from Simon and approach it one day at a time, while focusing on the things I can control (like barking at delivery trucks).
Full disclosure: Before writing this, I had just finished my breakfast of ice cream and a slice of pizza. Who’s going to judge me? Not Simon, who is patiently waiting for a piece of the crust. That’s the kind of unconditional support we need during these trying times.
While adoptions at Marin Humane are currently suspended, Simon will be available as soon as the shelter-in-place is lifted. If you’re interested in meeting him when we resume normal operations, call us at 415-506-6225. And if you’d like to help support our foster families or other programs at Marin Humane, please consider a donation at marinhumane.org/donate.
Carina DeVera is the digital marketing specialist at Marin Humane, which contributes Tails of Marin articles and welcomes comments and questions from the community. Go to marinhumane.org for more information or find us on social media @marinhumane.
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During uncertain times, foster dogs provide love and support - Marin Independent Journal
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