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I hope you had a happy Mother’s Day! The stores were a flurry with families buying cards, flowers, treats – whatever it takes to let Mom know how appreciated she is. I would also like to recognize the many mothers of pets. While they are often overlooked, their love for their pets is a thing to be celebrated.

There is a particular type of “pet mom” who deserves recognition, and it is the “foster mom.” The foster mom takes in the neediest of pets – the sick, the broken, the young, the elderly. Typically, she will nurse them to health, love them, teach them, and then let them go to bring joy to another family. Sometimes, when healing is just not possible, she will love them until they pass from this world to the next. Foster moms are responsible for saving hundreds and hundreds of lives in our community alone.

This poem so accurately describes what goes into foster, so in honor of all foster moms, here it is…

There I sat, alone and afraid,

You got a call and came right to my aid.

You bundled me up with blankets and love,

And, when I needed it most, you gave me a hug.

I learned that the world was not all that scary and cold,

That sometimes there is someone to have and to hold.

You taught me what love is, you helped me to mend,

You loved me and healed me and became my first friend.

And just when I thought you’d done all you do,

There came along not one new lesson, but two.

First you said, “Sweetheart, you’re ready to go,

I’ve done all I can, and you’ve learned all I know.”

Then you bundled me up with a blanket and kiss,

Along came a new family, they even have kids!

They took me to their home, forever to stay,

At first I thought you sent me away.

Then that second lesson became perfectly clear,

No matter how far, you will always be near.

And so, Foster Mom, you know I’ve moved on,

I have a new home, with toys and a lawn.

But I’ll never forget what I learned that first day,

You never really give your fosters away.

You gave me these thoughts to remember you by,

We may never meet again, and now I know why.

You’ll remember I lived with you for a time,

I may not be yours, but you’ll always be mine.

— Author Unknown

To the Cumberland County Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Foster Moms – thank you.  Thank you for all that you do to save our animals.

Source: A salute to the SPCA’s foster moms

Posted in 2017, SJRAS Articles