Monday was our first day of offering visits to Temporary Care pets and pet parents, and there are no words to express the amount of joy that was on display! Whether it was Gigi’s leap into her family’s outstretched arms, or Simon crawling into his dad’s lap, everyone was so happy and thankful to see their family members.

When an emergency happens or a crisis strikes, sometimes there just aren’t available options for pet families. Many of these families are forced to “give up” their furry family members due to hospitalization, natural disaster, or situations of domestic violence. Temporary Care, also known as crisis fostering, is one of the programs we offer at Nashville Humane to help keep animals in their homes by giving short-term solutions and access to resources for pet families.

The Temporary Care program is a relatively new program here at Nashville Humane and part of our overarching Community Resource program, which helps guide our mission to shelter as a service to our community. These “visiting days” are a first-ever occasion for the shelter and were made possible by a number of different people from within various shelter teams.

And if you’re wondering what these visits were actually like, here’s a little bit of a recap. While Simon’s visit was mainly cat youtube, cozying up to his dad, and catnip toys, Simon’s dad also made a point to revisit one of their favorite pastimes – Ice cream! Simon and his dad got to share some ice cream from a tiny, tiny spoon!

And Gigi? Well, she simply got to be her family’s dog again. They did a fun visit in the park she knows and loves, played some games of fetch with dad, snuggled up with mom in the car, and then chowed down on an entire bag of treats.

When you’re struggling with a massive challenge in life, the last thing you want to have to worry about is, “what’s going to happen to my pet?” Our pets are family. Temporary Care pets like Gigi and Simon are able to spend a short time in one of Nashville Humane’s loving foster homes, and that allows their people time and peace of mind to know their pet is safe until they’re all permanently reunited.

Thank you for supporting Temporary Care and keeping pets with the families who love them!