Pet foster families 'get to save a life,' play key roles at Jacksonville animal shelters

Hamlet, Othello, Romeo and Caesar are about 1 1/2 pounds of fur and energy.

The 5- to 6-week-old kittens temporarily live with foster parent Lindsay Layendecker and her boyfriend, Jon Keeley, in a cozy Riverside Jacksonville home with the couple’s own dog and five cats.

The kittens are part of the family, fed and cuddled just like the resident dog and five cats, Layendecker said. When they are ready to be adopted, at 2 pounds, she will see to it that they become part of someone else’s loving family.

She will shed a tear or two when they go.

Then Layendecker, a Florida Virtual School teacher who works from home, will get over it and prepare for a new influx of fosters. Her motivation is simple.

“You know what the alternative is. If it makes me a little sad, I’ll take it for them not to be euthanized,” she said. “I’ve got time, I’ve got space. … Someone’s got to do it, might as well be me.”

If only there were more people like her, said Nikki Harris, division chief of Jacksonville Animal Care and Protective Services.

Harris said she counts on foster parents like Layendecker, particularly during times of shelter overcrowding, which was the case even before 51 dogs and 11 cats arrived last week from a hoarding case.

The city shelter has about 400 animals in residence and 700 more in foster care, she said.

Foster homes are key to maintaining a managable shelter population and no-kill status, which means only animals with serious health or behavior problems are put down.

“Fostering saves lives every day,” Harris said. “Without foster care, we would have nowhere to physically house those pets. We also do not have the resources needed to provide the staffing that would require increasing our capacity by 700 pets, so foster parents are an essential part sustaining our no-kill community in Jacksonville.”

Also, foster parents can provide the “individual care and attention needed by pets who would not otherwise thrive in the shelter,” such as kittens that need to be bottle-fed or animals recovering from surgery or an illness, she said.

“Foster parents come to the rescue of pets like this on a regular basis, and we could not save the number of lives we do without them,” she said.

They also play key roles at the Jacksonville Humane Society, which currently has about 557 animals in its care, including 197 in foster care, said Executive Director Denise Deisler.

“Foster homes provide a healthier environment for animals who are at greater risk for health issues in the shelter or for those who may be shy and fearful,” she said. “At times we are full, they help us to expand beyond the four walls of the shelter and increase our capacity.”

When the city shelter was dealing with the recent hoarding case, the city and society issued pleas for foster families. The society was able to move 74 animals from its shelter to foster homes, freeing up space to take in some of the city shelter’s animals, she said.

Foster parent Layendecker is well-known at the city shelter for her willingness to take in shelter animals, usually kittens, that are not yet adoptable. She is also well-known for the quirky names she gives her charges — her previous foster kittens were Meatball, Spaghetti, Fettucine and Alfredo.

Whatever their monikers, she said she feels compelled to “do my part” and encouraged other people to do the same.

“You get to save a life,” she said. “I love to foster. It is nice being part of their journey.”

Beth Reese Cravey: (904) 359-4109