When Jerica Shuck realized that she would be stuck mostly at home when her job at Penn State moved to teleworking and Gov. Tom Wolf’s stay-at-home order took effect, she decided to do something to help her feel a little less lonely: She fostered a cat named Jade from Centre County PAWS.
“Since I live alone and would be social distancing as much as possible, I knew I would miss being around friends and family, so I wanted to welcome a little friend to my home,” said Shuck. “I had been considering adopting a cat before, but also wanted to see how a pet would fit into my life, home and heart.”
PAWS, like many animal shelters across the country, has faced struggles amidst the response to the coronavirus pandemic. But it has seen a tremendous amount of support from people stepping up and fostering animals during this time of social distancing.
Nearly all of the animals that were at the shelter have been able to go out to foster homes.
“We have been able to send over 90 animals out to foster homes, which not only allows us to keep our staffing at the shelter to a minimum, thereby keeping our staff and volunteers safer, but also gives those animals a tremendous start at a new life,” said Lisa Bahr, executive director. “Fosters are invaluable to us because they give us an accurate idea of how a pet does in a home environment. Living in the shelter, even with our amazingly kind and skilled staff and volunteers, is stressful for a lot of animals. Being at home is best, so we are grateful whenever we can provide that family environment.”
And, especially during this trying time, having an animal in the home can provide a sense of companionship that many are missing. For Shuck, it was love at first sight for her and Jade.
“From the moment I walked into the first cat room at PAWS, Jade was all over me. … Maybe she’s just naturally a lover, but I felt like I got ‘chosen,’ and had some inkling I may not be able to part with her. I work part-time at a grocery store in town and having a loving companion who was just excited to see me come home at night and cuddle up with me did a lot to help the tough days get a little better,” said Shuck.
Fostering Jade has been an adventure, but one that Shuck doesn’t want to end, as she plans now to adopt her feline friend as a permanent member of her household. Sometimes it is jokingly called a “foster fail” when an animal was supposed to be a temporary pet but ends up staying long-term. Since the stay-at-home order, PAWS had 10 cats that have become “foster fails,” with up to three more that are possibilities.
“Over the past few weeks, I fell into a routine with her, and I could see her becoming more comfortable in my home,” Shuck said. “Where she was once scared of my central air turning on and off, now I can’t manage to keep her from pawing open my bathroom cupboard to hide inside. I can’t pinpoint why, but the fact I’ve been able to successfully care for another living being during this time has helped manage the uncertainty. She’s a constant, and we’re friends. I couldn’t imagine giving her up.”
Brittany Waltemate had a similar experience when she decided to foster a cat from PAWS. She had been considering fostering a pet for a while, and when she was forced to work from home, it seemed like the perfect time and be a win-win-win for her, the animal and PAWS.
“Not only would I be able to help PAWS during a period of turmoil, I was also hoping to benefit a bit from sharing my solo quarantine with another living creature,” said Waltemate.
Her foster cat, Desi, was a little shy at first, but slowly came out of her shell to feel at home in Waltemate’s apartment. Now, like Shuck, Waltemate plans on adopting her cat.
“At the beginning I had no intention of adopting, but now I find it hard to imagine my life without Desi,” Waltemate said. “I know it sounds cliché, but I feel like he adopted me and I just had to catch up and make it official. I feel like we worked really well together. As I type this, he is pawing at my leg so I can let him come sit in my lap while I work, as is our new daily schedule.”
Phil Gowling and his wife, Elaine Farndale, both grew up with dogs and had a German shepherd after they graduated from college, but a busy work schedule filled with travel kept them from having a canine over the past 20 years. Because their work schedules eased up over the past couple of years, they decided it was time to get a new dog. They decided to adopt, but thought they were going to have to wait until the COVID-19 crisis was over. Then they learned about the need for foster care of animals during the pandemic.
“We saw an appeal by a shelter on the news due to monetary challenges and lack of volunteers following the stay-at-home order. This convinced us that we should at least try to help out in any way we can,” said Gowling.
They fostered an American bulldog mix named Jayda, who had been at PAWS for sixth months. They fell quickly in love. Now, Gowling and Farndale are in the process of adopting Jayda.
“It is a great feeling to know we have done our bit to help out a local charitable organization and give a deserving dog a good home,” said Gowling.
Phil Gowling and his wife, Elaine Farndale, brought in Jayda as a foster pet, but now are going through the adoption process to give Jayda a permanent home. Submitted photo.
And it has helped PAWS immensely as they work to get through the difficulties brought about by the pandemic.
“Being unable to be open to the public drastically reduces our ability to do adoptions and larger transfers of animals, so we are restricted in the number of animals we can help directly through re-homing,” said Bahr. “We also had to cancel one major fundraiser, with others still uncertain in the coming months. These events are important sources of income for our shelter. We are hopeful that we will be able to make up some of these losses with a strong showing during Centre Gives.”
Through all this, she said she is glad to see something positive — dogs and cats in homes with people who care about them.
“It’s a bright spot in the midst of a hard time for all of us. When we get updates on cats and dogs who are completely settled in and loving life in a foster home, it is heartening,” she said. “I am grateful for the tremendous community support we have received.”
