Nomad Pet Fostering

In the short term, our goal is to establish a sustainable program that will care for the pets of extremely low-income owners in Auburn, WA.

Over time, we aim to grow this program to serve larger and larger geographical areas.

We also strive to shore up existing programs so that these pet owners don't fall through the cracks; one example is working to open pet-friendly "clean and sober" housing, so that addicts can keep their pets after they leave in-patient treatment (this is often a barrier to these owners entering treatment). Similar goals include establishing pet-friendly warming and cooling shelters during extreme weather.

To build a stable and sustainable pet care program, we are taking several steps:
1. Frequent outreach to the pet owners who need us: we visit "homeless camps" and resource centers regularly to check on these pets, to connect these pet owners with other existing community programs that will help them care for their pets, and to build trust with these pet owners.
2. Frequent outreach to related agencies: we maintain good relationships with local law enforcement, city government, anti-homelessness programs, humane societies, care managers in hospitals, counselors focused on addiction treatment, etc.
3. Ongoing recruitment efforts to expand our network of experienced and trustworthy pet care volunteers: we already use word of mouth, the networks of existing volunteers, and social media to let the community know what we do and how they can help. In addition to this, we are building up a marketing department to help us recruit more effectively.

Once our program is working well within the city of Auburn (we are able to maintain a volunteer base and operate at or below 80% capacity without turning pets away), we will slowly expand the program by accepting cases from neighboring areas. We will also focus on building volunteer bases in those same areas.

To help prevent pet owners from falling through systemic gaps, we have a few plans:
1. Pet-friendly "clean and sober" housing
We are partnering with a counseling practice (specializing in addiction treatment) to locate one such house that is willing to try a pilot program. The pilot program will involve a single dog or cat being hosted at that house, either by the pet owner or by a pet foster parent. Nomad Pet Fostering will provide ongoing support by checking in on the house and the pet often, making sure all needs are met and the pet remains safe. The counselors will help by monitoring the residents of the house to make sure the presence of a pet is not hurting their recovery, and making sure the residents continue to be safe for the pet to live with.
If this pilot program goes well, we plan to use that success to convince more housing providers in this sector of human services to host animals at their houses.
2. Pet-friendly cooling and warming shelters
Currently there are none within Auburn. We plan to use our contacts with the city and with other community programs to find a location that will allow pets on the premises temporarily. Nomad Pet Fostering will lead this effort.
3. Free pet vaccination clinics
There are existing programs that provide Auburn residents with free pet vaccinations, BUT these programs require pet owners to drive to another city to actually get their pets vaccinated. We are applying for grants to fund a few vaccination clinics a year - days when we will have a veterinarian come to a location that is easily accessible by people without reliable transportation.

We will also continue to work with other programs in our community to identify and reduce other systemic gaps.

We are a passionate group of volunteers. That can't be underestimated!

We have a partnership with a local pet supply store that provides most of our pet food for free.

We have a good relationship with a veterinarian, who gives us a discount on vet services for the pets we serve.

In our first 6 months, we grew from a single volunteer into a 501(c)(3) corporation with 20+ volunteers; in that time we helped 33 animals directly by taking care of them when their pet owners were temporarily unable to care for them. We established good relationships with the city, law enforcement, humane societies, etc. These relationships have been invaluable in educating our leadership about the issues related to our work, and this education is ongoing and passionately pursued.

We have now received requests for our services from as far away as Portland, OR, and hospitals throughout our own region routinely call us to help with their patients' pets. We have been at capacity for as long as we've been open, no matter how many volunteers we recruit. This indicates that we are becoming well known to the people who need us.

We have set up a regular outreach schedule to develop relationships with the homeless community in Auburn.

We have begun working with a counseling practice that specializes on addiction treatment, with a shared goal of opening up pet-friendly "clean and sober" housing.