Davis families find fun in fostering pets

PHOTO: Junior Shay Hawkes plays with her three foster kittens: Milo, Lilly and Leo.

By Clara Ault,

BlueDevilHUB.com Staff–

As families have more time on their hands, with much of it spent at home, some look towards fostering animals as a way to give back. Because of this, shelters across the country are emptying out for the first time in history. 

Junior Shay Hawkes and her family are fostering three kittens: Milo, Leo and Lilly. 

“My friend had cats and it looked really fun so I took her old foster cats once they got too old. Now I’m raising them until they’re old enough to be adopted,” Hawkes said. 

It took some convincing from her parents, who were afraid of growing attached to the kittens. 

“My parents were so resistant. They did not at all want to foster cats because my mom thought she was gonna fall in love with all of them and then she was never gonna be able to give them up. That kinda has happened, and now she wants to adopt all three of our foster cats,” Hawkes said. 

Right now, lockdown restrictions are allowing the Hawkes to get some extra quality time in with her new furry friends. 

“They could have been adopted a while ago but, because of [the] coronavirus, the neutering place isn’t open so we have to wait until they get neutered and then they can go on their way,” Hawkes said. 

Junior Skylar Schouten and her family are no strangers to fostering. 

“We have fostered in the past a bunch of times cause we don’t have cats so it’s a way to be around cats. My mom is a vet so they trust us with a little harder cases so we got these five when they were only two days old,” Schouten said.

She says the worst part is having to help them go to the bathroom when they are that young.

“I guess the hardest part is when they’re young we have to make them go to the bathroom by yourselves which can be kind of gross,” Schouten said.

Currently, Schouten is fostering five kittens: three boys and two girls. 

To any families considering fostering, Hawkes recommends giving it a try. 

“Do it. It’s really fun except that I like them a lot and it’s gonna be really hard to give them up,” Hawkes said.