07 May Foster Friday: Meet Todd H.
As a part of our 10,000 lives saved celebration we will be featuring the stories of some of our fosters, both Northern and Southern, old and new. As a rescue that does not have a shelter facility, fosters are a vital part of our rescue.
Meet Todd H., a long-time LHK9 foster dad. 
What is your position in the rescue?
I am a foster for Last Hope.
What year did you join?
2015
Why did you decide to join Last Hope?
I decided to join Last Hope because I became aware that fostering dogs was a thing! It sort of fell into my lap. I was unaware that I could be involved with a dog rescue until I saw a foster dog being brought to a weekly kickball game. From that point, I applied to foster and was approved.
How many fosters have you had?
I have had 70 fosters, soon to be 71 this week.
What do you think has been the biggest change in the rescue since you started?
I personally haven’t seen much change, other than watching the rescue become extremely popular, with a huge demand for adoptable dogs.
What is your favorite adoption story?
My favorite adoption story is the same as my favorite foster story. I picked up my 24th foster, Duke, in December of 2016. He was very skittish, had very little interaction with people, and was terrified of life. I carried him into my car when I picked him up from quarantine and brought him home. He needed several days to decompress in a secluded area of the house. Finally, he broke through his gate and found the couch. This is when I knew Duke was a keeper.
Duke didn’t walk at all on the leash. He would freeze, and absolutely not budge. Duke needed more decompressing. House breaking this dog was proving to be difficult. Nonetheless, I was determined to make him a “normal” dog. He had such potential, as I had seen his abilities in small doses. Skills consisting of licking a plate clean, to finally letting his tongue hang out and pant a little. I knew Duke was ready to be a good boy, he just needed some mentoring.
I reached out to the amazing Last Hope community, and ended up borrowing a senior dog named Coach. He was 10, and showed Duke how to lift his leg when going to the bathroom. Coach taught him the noises on the streets were just noises, and not to worry. Before long, Duke started doing his business outside. He just needed some coaching!
Several weeks later, Duke got adopted by a single woman freshly out of college. She had good intentions for Duke, but unfortunately he struggled at his new house, so he decided to act up a little. A couple of destroyed crates, ruined bedding, and torn up carpeting…no big deal right? The adopter realized Duke needed more attention during the day, and that it ultimately wasn’t the best time for her to have a skittish rescue dog. She returned Duke two weeks total later and I was happy to foster him again. I continued fostering him for a few weeks before I realized that Duke was already home. His “Gotcha Day” was March 9th of 2017, I adopted him and never regretted it for one second. He is the sweetest, most amazing rescue dog, in my opinion, and we love him. He is five now and doing great!
What is your favorite part of volunteering with Last Hope?
Getting to help save a dog’s life, being a stepping stone on their furever journey, while also fulfilling my love and need of having dogs around! Also the variety of having different dogs all the time, helps keep my resident dog, Duke, company.
What is the most important thing you have learned since you started volunteering?
Every dog is different and has their own ways. You’ll have to adapt to each dog in order to make it happy and thrive. A huge amount of patience and determination is required to foster a more difficult dog or a dog with needs different than what you might be used to.
What advice would you give to a new volunteer?
Jump right in, get involved, raise some money, save some dogs, and have some fun!
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