Fostering A Puppy with Lucky Chance Rescue - All You Need To Know!

Fosters need to live within 60 miles of St. Louis, St. Charles County areas.  Staying in our area makes it much easier for our volunteers to bring supplies when needed, for fosters to meet with potential adopters and to travel to vet appointments.

Yes! We provide food, crates, puppy pens, puppy pads, collar, leash, blankets, toys, bowls and any specific supplies your pups will need. You are not required to purchase any supplies for your foster dog, unless you want to. Donations are always appreciated but not necessary!

It depends on the dog and the situation. The average stay in a foster home is about 3 weeks for puppies, 1-2 months for adults, sometimes longer. Much of our timeframe depends on the age of the puppies, veterinary visits and when puppies can have their vaccinations. Others, recovering from an injury, certain breeds and senior dogs, may stay much longer. Special animals like neonates, moms and babies need up to 10-12 weeks.

No. If you are fostering a puppy, please keep your puppy confined to your home. Once your puppy has 2 rounds of vaccinations you can take them outside in your yard to go potty. Dog parks and public places may inadvertently expose your foster puppy to deadly illnesses. You are not allowed to take any foster dog from the Lucky Chance Rescue to an off‐leash dog park. While these parks can be fun for some dogs, there are far too many unknowns for it to be a safe and healthy experience for a foster dog. Diseases are easily transmitted, and the temperaments of visiting dogs are unknown, thus creating a huge liability to the Lucky Chance Rescue.

We do ask that you work on potty training, leash training and basic commands like, “sit, stay, down, off, leave it, drop it”, A well trained dog is much easier to find an adopter for. If you have any questions about training techniques please contact your foster coordinator. Puppy Pad training, crate training and potty training outside are important to help get your foster pups ready for adoption. We use positive reinforcement training methods. No aversive training techniques or tools may be used on foster dogs. Aversive includes prong collars, choke chain collars, electronic collars, spray bottles, physical reprimands including alpha rolls, hitting, or using the crate as punishments.

Yes. We will create a vet care plan with the information you need to schedule appointments at the veterinarian closest to you. Both you and the vet will receive the vet care plan in an email so everyone will know what is pre-authorized and what the puppy will need at each appointment. You will make all appointments around your schedule to make it easier for you to get your foster pup to the vet. If for some reason you cannot make it on the day of the appointment, please give the vet 24 hour notice to reschedule or let us know and we can help find a volunteer to get your foster to the appointment. Veterinarians bill the rescue directly so there is no cost to foster parents. If you visit a vet that is not on the list, you will not be reimbursed for the cost. If your foster dog gets sick, Please text, email or Facebook message your foster coordinator to authorize a vet visit, or advise you otherwise. Once a veterinary visit has been authorized, you can make an appointment with your assigned veterinarian.

Our veterinarians are located in Webster Groves,  Lake St. Louis, Franklin County, Ferguson, Bloomsdale. We will hopefully have a new vet we will be working with in the Ballwin/Chesterfield area as well. 

Supply great photos and a bio so we can post on social media, the website, Petfinder, adopt a pet and other pet networking websites. Telling friends and family about them, especially through social media, will help create a “network effect” and will speed up the process of finding a forever home. Providing a foster dog with basic training, manners and socializing with others will increase their adoptability.

YES, As long as foster parents meet the requirements necessary for adoption, foster parents have first choice to adopt their foster dog. You must notify Lucky Chance Rescue within 2 weeks if you intend on adopting. On some occasions, we may deny fosters from adopting if their home is not the best fit as a forever home. For example, Huskies, Shepherds, Heelers, Hounds and other high energy working dogs are fine in a foster home without a fence. However, as they get older and bigger they may require fences to keep them safe and confined. It is easy to fall in love with your foster, but always remember, our goal is always to find the best fit for the dog and their forever family.

We are happy to find a temporary foster for you while you are out of town. Please give us at least 1 week to find a temp placement.  We may ask that you transport your foster dog and his/her supplies to the temp foster so you can fill them in on all the things you are working on and their routine/schedule.

We post on Facebook, our website, Pet Finder, Adopt-a-Pet and several other pet adoption websites.   We need great pictures and great bio’s for you foster dog(s) – the better the pictures the more attention they get! We also ask that  you share information on your social media platforms with your friends, family, neighbors and co-workers!

We do a preliminary approval of adoption applications. If the applicant meets the needs of your foster dog, we will then forward the application to you and to your foster coordinator.  No one knows your foster dog better than you, so we do ask that you reach out to potential adopters to tell them about your pup(s) and answer specific questions they may have. Although you are not required to, we ask you to contact their vet to confirm they keep their home pets current with vetting and contact their references. A meet and greet at the adopter’s home would be the next step to make sure your foster pup gets along with any pets in the home, the home and yard are a safe environment and the family is all on board with adoption.  If you are uncomfortable doing any of this, one of our foster coordinators will process the adoption application and do the meet and greet for you or with you!  Almost all of our fosters love to meet the family who may be adopting their foster dog. It gives them comfort knowing they will be going to a loving and safe home.