Short-Term Love

Among the many great loves I have experienced, the unconditional love between pet and human has been a great treasure.  Probably I inherited a love of animals from my maternal grandparents: Mama Mary and Daddy Mat (as I called them) had, inside their home, many dogs, a Myna bird and a parrot; in outside buildings were hunting dogs, lovebirds, parakeets, plus the peacocks that strolled about the grounds, and, in the fields, horses and cows, and once, a pet deer. My childhood pets were a series of adorable dachshunds. Not until I was 18 years old did my life intersect with cats, but it was love at first cat, so virtually all of my adult life I have shared my home with dog(s) and cat(s). 

The passing of wonderful, sassy Daisy and beautiful, inspiring Mitzvah left me bereft. I have lived the past few months with these contradictory emotions: I can’t live without a dog and/or a cat, and, at my age and with my love of travel, maybe I should not adopt another pet.

Perhaps I have stumbled on to the solution for my paradoxical problem: pet foster-care. Obviously, pet rescue organizations have an overwhelming need for fosters; while that opportunity interested me, I wasn’t sure if I could foster without getting my heart broken. Would I be able to care for an animal, short-term, and then say good-bye once it found its forever home?

Tentatively, I submitted my paperwork to be a volunteer foster pet-parent, and, voila, almost immediately I had three black kittens with huge green eyes living in my home. So far, so good.  The kittens have a safe place to live, with all that they need for a good kitten life, including daily individual cuddles.  Every Saturday and Sunday I will take the kittens to the local pet store, where the rescue group holds an adoption fair. This past Sunday, I received a text that one of the kittens was to be adopted! I was truly happy for the kitten. Alas, the potential adopter changed her mind, so three kittens returned to my home. However, I am happy to have feline energy in my house again and I will be pleased when each kitten is eventually adopted.

And, although this is not technically foster care, a sweet puppy is coming to live with me for two weeks when his parents/my friends go on their vacation. I see a rambunctious canine in my future!

I’m thinking short-term love might have a lot to recommend it!