Save a life, foster a Doberman

Fosters give a dog a safe place to rest and recover. They learn the true personalities of our dogs and help prepare them for adoption. In return, they receive unconditional love from the ones they save and watch them blossom in their forever homes.
Apply to Foster

What is Fostering?

The short answer is that fostering a dog is when you give a dog in need a temporary home while we look for it’s forever home. The reality is that it’s so much more than that. Fosters are the core of rescue and we could not save a single dog without them. They take in a dog that has lost it’s family, its hope, it’s everything, and they show it love, kindness and help it heal. A dog in foster learns house manners and how to be a member of the family much better than one in a kennel environment, and we also learn more about what sort of a home the dog needs to be successful. They also experience far less stress than in a kennel environment. The rescue pays for any required vetting, fosters are asked only to pay for food, however in some circumstances, the rescue may be able to supply food as well.

Read our fostering FAQ for more information on what fostering entails.

Benefits of Fostering

Save a Doberman

Most of our Dobermans come from high kill shelters… fostering saves their lives!

Help Them Heal

See them through vetting and help them through their emotional scars.

Learn the Breed

Fostering is a great way to experience the breed before you adopt or commit.

Get Them Ready

Help teach them manners and skills so that we can best match them to their homes.

Why We Foster

“It all started with “we need an emergency foster….” I should have known the second my husband jumped at driving to South Carolina from Alabama on a Tuesday that whatever dog came home, sight unseen wasn’t going anywhere. I got a text of a red/rust, floppy eared female and it said “Yeah….she’s not going anywhere. She’s ours.” I stood firm! This dog was NOT going to be ours. Then Tyra arrived. She was terrified. She was grumpy. She didn’t feel well (after all, she was heart worm positive). She was stubborn. She was also in our bed on night one despite our usual “no dobermans in the bed” rule. This silly girl wormed her way into our hearts so quickly that there really was no turning back. Four days into our fostering Tyra, I reached out to the board and said “I think she’s a Harris….” Two and a half years later, we realize we didn’t save her. She saved us. She makes us laugh every single day. She knows when we need to snuggle. She knows just how lucky we are to have her.”

-Allyson, GDR foster & secretary

Why We Foster

“I still remember the day I picked up Nala. I had just bought a brand new car the night before and not even my own dogs had been in it yet. I met the transporter for her and her crate. I hadn’t thought about the crate and quickly discovered that my new trunk was smaller than my previous one. The only way that crate was fitting in my car was to fold down the back seats. Nala would be riding shotgun. The transporter brought her out and the smell hit me. She reeked of neglect. Her legs were scarred and scabby, her skin flakey, her coat filthy. Her family had turned her into animal control at 10 years of age claiming she was a stray. One of the officers found out she was actually their dog and they surrendered her in favor of a new puppy. I smiled and sighed, kissing that “new car smell” good-bye as I lifted her up into the front seat. She quickly curled up and settled in, and was the perfect passenger. On the way home we stopped for a puppacino at Starbucks, and for the rest of the ride, that smile never left her face.”

– Danielle, GDR foster & CTO

Why We Foster

“Keika came into rescue because she was being advertised on Craigslist for breeding. Back yard breeding is bad enough as it is, but it was especially dangerous for Keika because she was albino. Albinos have a multitude of health risks and intentionally breeding to produce albinos isn’t good. Keika caught everyone’s eye; she is beautiful! But the rescue knew it would take a special adopter who understood the risks associated with albinos to give her a good home. At first things were a little rocky. She had a false pregnancy soon after coming to our house. She became very protective of her space and of me. We knew that she needed her space and we allowed her that. She had been with us some time before we introduced her to our other dogs.We became extremely attached to this beautiful girl. When I transported her halfway to her new owner, I could have cried my eyes out. He stepped out of the car with treats and won her over immediately. She now has other siblings, two of which are other rescued albinos. Her dad sends me videos periodically and it warms my heart to see her so happy with her new family!  With every foster, you have a very different special connection. Each dog has touched my heart. As much as I want to hang on to all of them, it’s more rewarding to watch them go on to loving homes of their own.”

-Elise, GDR foster