# Jenna - St. Martinville, LA - 2 yr B/T F



## KMSlemons (Jun 30, 2010)

I found her on Petfinder.com today while looking at local (Louisiana) German Shepherds. This is a kill shelter. Jenna is also heartworm positive. 

Adoptable German Shepherd Dog: JENNA: Petfinder


After a lot of contemplation I called the shelter to see what the story was with Jenna. Jenna's been there two or three weeks and is a "hyper baby who wants to play." That is encouraging, because I'm considering going there and fostering her. I have a couple of questions before I make a decision, though.

I have my 7 month old boy and my 3 year old Rat Terrier Mix. None of them, including Jenna have been altered yet. Though, we are planning to have Mgelika neutered before Lakota's next heat. 

1) Should I be concerned about Jenna's ability to get along with Lakota and Mgelika? I'd just die if anything happened to either of them.

2) Should I bring my dogs with me to meet her at the shelter to see if they all get along?

3) I don't crate my dogs. I don't even own a crate. I'd need one for transport, though. Is there anyone to call when you need to borrow a crate? I listed an ad on Craigslist. Is that what I should do?

4) Am I nuts for considering this? 

Any advice would be great. Thanks in advance.


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## Jax08 (Feb 13, 2009)




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## KMSlemons (Jun 30, 2010)

Thank you Jax. I meant to do that, but forgot.


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## RunShepherdRun (Oct 5, 2009)

It's great that you consider fostering!

Who would be the organization you foster with? Does the shelter have a foster program? Who will show you the ropes of fostering, who will pay the vet bills, post the dog on PF, and screen adopters? 

It is crucial to introduce dogs slowly and to use crates, gates and doors.

Unless the shelter has a good foster program, and preferably someone experienced in rescuing GSDs, I think it is best to join a GSD rescue and foster with them. That way one doesn't have to repeat all the mistakes that others already made, and can learn from experienced foster homes. Much better for all, dogs and people. You would have an initial foster home visit before you foster to see how your dogs do, get a sense of personalities and dog experience to match the foster home with a dog that fits the home, and check whether the physical space is suitable for another large dog. In addition, with good rescues, an experienced volunteer will bring the dog to a novice foster home and set up the dog there, supervising with dog introductions and making sure the physical setup works for the dog. It's so much better to build on experience rather than having to figure it out all alone!

There are two GSD rescues in LA:
New Orleans German Shepherd Rescue
North Louisiana German Shepherd Rescue

If your own dogs are to be spayed/neutered soon, I would not bring in a new dog during their recovery period. Most foster dog programs will require that the resident dogs are s/n, to make sure that a few weeks down the road there won't be another half dozen dogs in need of rescue!

As an example, here is how the GSD rescue I volunteer for supports foster homes:
http://www.gsrne.org/foster.htm

Go for it, and do it well prepared and supported to be effective!


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