As the new year approaches, it’s a great time to revamp and expand your foster care program. By creating new foster activities, you can provide alternative housing arrangements for animals in need, engage your community, and highlight the vital impact they can have on your organization. In this blog, we will explore new hospitality activities to attract more hospitality volunteers.
Creation of foster care manuals for foster care activities
To ensure your host families are well prepared and equipped to care for their adoptive pets, it is crucial to develop comprehensive foster care manuals for each type of foster care opportunity your organization offers. These manuals should cover essential information that may be obvious to you but might not be familiar to your host families. Some key topics to include are:
- Home preparation: Provide instructions on creating a safe and appropriate environment for foster pets within their homes.
- Medical care: Describe expectations for basic medical care, including vaccinations and deworming, and specify where and how this care will be administered.
- Bringing the animal home: Outline what to do when you bring the foster pet home, including introductions to existing pets, if applicable.
- Routine daily care: Explain daily care responsibilities, such as feeding, exercise, grooming, and socialization.
- Medical and emergency protocols: Detail the procedures to follow in the event of a medical emergency and provide contact details for veterinary support.
- Behavioral support: Provide resources and advice on management and treatment common behavior problems this can happen.
- Adoption assistance: Share strategies on how foster families can actively help find forever homes for their pets.
Effective recruiting strategies
To attract more foster volunteers, it is essential to develop effective recruitment strategies. Here are some ideas to consider:
- Promotional material: Create eye-catching marketing materials for print media, local news channels, social media platforms, volunteer recruitment websites (such as volunteermatch.org and linkedin.com), and your organization’s website. Use tools like Canva, TikTok, Adobe Creative Cloud or Wevideo to create engaging content regularly.
- Online reception request: Simplify the application process by creating an online foster application on your organization’s website. This allows interested people to register conveniently and efficiently.
- Open house events: Host recurring open house events and invite community members to attend. These events not only inform the community about your organization’s lifesaving programs, but also provide an opportunity to engage potential volunteers. Encourage volunteers to lead these events, freeing up staff time and fostering a sense of belonging within the hospitality program.
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