Caring Causes - Cat Fostering

 Deborah Felin-Magaldi, Co-founder of Helen Sanders CatPAWS, is helping change the outcome for vulnerable cats by encouraging more people to foster!

Each year, more than 2.8 million cats enter U.S. shelters, with 277,000 euthanized in shelters in 2025. Fostering for just a few weeks can save a life.

I had a chance to learn more in this interview.

• Why is it so important for people to consider fostering cats?  This time of year especially, there are more cats - often kittens not yet eating on their own - coming into public shelters than most shelters can care for. The kittens especially require around the clock feeding and care, as well as being vulnerable to illness, so their best chance of survival is to move them out of the shelter into a foster home.

• How can people be involved even if they don't want a long-term commitment?  Fostering can be relatively short term, and maybe someone winds up fostering just one cat they have found. Foster caregivers for our organization tell us when they are able and willing to foster so they determine how much and for how long they want to be involved. 

• What are some criteria for fostering? We offer excellent training and support for our foster caregivers. There are some criteria around being able to separate foster cats from any resident animals, having transportation and living in proximity to our foster coordinator team and the clinics we use, and being able and willing to follow direction and communicate with our foster team. Our organization provides and covers the cost of supplies, veterinary care, food. The foster caregiver provides love and care and a safe space to grow!