[clotho]

Fostering is one of the most rewarding experiences I've ever had!!! I foster for a local guinea pig rescue. I took in a pregnant female and her sister. I needed to have space in a separate room so I could quarantine these new additions for the first few weeks. They had been rescued right from a shelter, so needed to be treated for mites and watched to make sure they were eating, etc.

The rewarding part was watching these two scared little piggies gradually learn to trust a little, to eat veggies (most of which they had never seen before), and to eat hay. The transformation in one of the girls was amazing - she had lost half her hair due to mites and as she got better, she looked like a whole new guinea pig!!! It was amazing and gratifying to watch.

I will admit though, we adopted the mom, the sister, and one of the babies - so be careful and don't take on more than you can handle - because odds are you might not want to give up your fosters. You could start small.

I introduced the mom, sister, and all 6 babies to my existing two girls and they lived with them until they were adopted, or in the male's case, until they needed to be separated at 21 days old. I still have one foster girl living with my girls.

You might want to check with the rescue about their policies. I always know that if I am fostering a piggie - I always have first "dibs" on that piggie if I want to keep him/her.

My older boar, Stripes, was living alone since his cagemate died. I have now taken on fostering an older male piggie who has become a wonderful companion for my male.

Fostering is a very necessary and important job - and it takes very special people to be able to do it. Give it a try - it's a wonderful feeling - but start slowly is my best advice. Good luck!