Foster Coordinator - Job Description

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• Reports to: Community Engagement Manager
  Full time, hourly position. Responsible for an on-call phone for at least 1 weeks each month.  
  Summary: Foster Coordinator is responsible for the general health, wellness, and organization of all animals in the various foster programs; recruiting and providing training, mentorship, and 24-hour on call assistance for all foster volunteers; and managing and maintaining organization of all foster programs and materials.
  Specific duties of the Foster Coordinator include, but are not limited to: 
  Primary duties: 
• Coordinate the movement of animals into and out of foster.
  • Post all urgent animals for foster within 1 hour of identification. 
  • Post all animals in need of foster within 3 hours of identification.
  • Ensure all animals have clear, appropriate photos before entering any foster program
  • Monitor health of animals in foster care and report any important findings/issues to medical personnel or management as appropriate
  • Coordinate booster, recheck, and drop off times with foster volunteers, and schedule them on foster calendar 
  • Ensure foster animals’ follow-up vaccinations, dewormer, and flea/heartworm prevention are given on time (check Tasks list regularly)
  • Coordinate with Veterinary Technician to ensure foster animals receive appropriate and timely medical checks and treatments for basic issues
  • Coordinate with Medical Director for foster animals to receive more advanced medical checks and  treatments 
  • Select and prepare candidates for Dog’s Day Out Program based on feedback/recommendations of other staff, coordinators, and management. 
  • Coordinate with Behavior Team to counsel/demonstrate the management or solution for basic behavioral issues (with a focus on positive reinforcement techniques)  
  • Coordinate with Shelter Director and Transport Coordinator to move foster animals through our transport and/or rescue programs, ensuring they receive all necessary care required for a particular outcome
  • Coordinate with Adoption Coordinator about kittens in need of foster, about kittens in need of alteration, and about kittens returning from foster to allow time to plan for space offsite/adoption events
  • Ensure foster animal locations and foster volunteer information is accurate in Shelterluv
  • Ensure shelter has all necessary items to prepare foster packs, coordinate with social media personnel to make call outs for donations of foster items, and prepare foster packs for outgoing foster animals


• Maintain foster programs, procedures, and training materials. 
  • Recruit, train, mentor, and serve as primary contact for foster volunteers
  • Manage the Southern Pines Foster Group on Facebook
  • Keep all foster materials and programs up to date, and provide appropriate orientation materials, manuals, and handouts to all foster volunteers 
  • Send out a monthly newsletter to all foster volunteers with updates, events, and other pertinent information 
  • Follow up with long-term fosters regularly to ensure their satisfaction and compliance with our foster programs and services
  • Develop and maintain advanced or specialized foster parent training program to ensure continual growth of foster program
  • Carry a cellular phone 24 hours a day, seven days a week when on call to allow for rapid response to foster animal emergencies. When on call, must have a plan in place for quickly and efficiently responding to various foster emergencies. Alternates call with Community Engagement Manager and other approved staff 
  • Keep all staff up to date on changes to foster programs; provide staff training for foster program procedures as needed; ensure that staff are providing accurate information to foster volunteers
  • Report to Community Engagement Manager about consistent or serious issues with foster programs, foster volunteers, or staff involved with foster programs, and work to devise solutions to these issues.
  • Track data on foster programs, and utilize it to create a monthly foster report to be submitted to Shelter Director on the first Monday of each month
    • Report number of animals sent into all foster programs in the past month and year
    • Report number of active foster parents in last 12 months
    • Key accomplishments of foster program for the past month
    • Challenges facing the foster program
  • Attend and/or assist Adoption Coordinator and Community Engagement Manager in organizing special events pertinent to foster programs
  • Perform other duties as assigned by Community Engagement Manager or other members of management
  • Uphold the shelter’s values and mission statement during interactions with the public and other staff
  • Working with volunteers
    • Remember that volunteers donate their time, talent, and energy and are not compensated monetarily for their contributions
    • Make a commitment to train volunteers: orient them to assigned area, assign work, answer questions, and assist with their needs 
    • Greet all volunteers that you see, and thank them for their help. Make them feel like they’re part of the team
    • Be mindful of your communication around volunteers; keep internal conversations internal, and only involve volunteers in the conversation when appropriate
    • Build relationships with volunteers. Volunteers with an emotional connection will continue to volunteer with us
    • Provide feedback to volunteers when they do something well
    • Offer encouragement, training, and constructive correction if you volunteers break protocol. Feedback should be non-confrontational and specific
    • Request volunteer assistance when you need it by asking volunteers 
    • Request volunteer assistance ahead of time by contacting the Volunteer Coordinator  
    • Engage with volunteers through the Southern Pines Volunteers Facebook group


• Assist Foster Technician with additional duties.
  • Clean holding room cages, and provide care for animals housed in Foster World
  • Keep Foster World surfaces and sink free from clutter
  • Sanitize Foster World surfaces and supplies between animals and as needed
  • Restock foster and holding room supplies 
  • Manage and clean Dogs Day Out gear as needed
  • Prepare foster packs prior to or during foster appointments 
  • Collect and gear up Dogs Day Out dogs
  • Enter all information from foster rechecks in ShelterLuv
  • Facilitate movement of shelter animals into foster care
    • Collect animals from their housing location and gear up needed
    • Collect necessary foster housing (crates, kennels, pens, etc.)
    • Collect foster supplies (food, towels, bowls, etc.)
    • Collect any medications
    • Assist foster with transporting animal to vehicle​

Top Priorities: 

• Recruitment and promotion on Facebook, phone calls, etc. 
• Focus on Dog's Day out; make sure lists are updated daily

• Have all animals identified as in need of foster posted within 3 hours of identification
• Have all urgent animals in need of foster posted within 1 hour of arrival (neonates, injured/ill animals, etc.)