There is an aspect of fostering that many don't think about very often - the cleaning! It's not like our own cats, when we can clean something when it gets dirty, and they fit in with our everyday house cleaning (or lack thereof!). Each time we prepare for new foster cats or kittens, the enclosure and its contents need to be thoroughly disinfected, sterilised, anti-bacteriaised (yes I made that up) and washed to within an inch of their life. Floors are swept and mopped, toys cleaned with anti-bacterial wipes, beds and blankets washed and all food & water containers thoroughly sterilised.
The reasons for this are twofold. Firstly, we want our new charges to be as comfortable and worry-free as possible. We have housed special needs (poorly socialised) cats before and know just how important it is for them to feel safe and secure before any socialisation can even begin. The last thing they need is a lingering smell of all the cats gone before them. The next two cats will be our 17th and 18th so you can imagine how daunting the smell of that many other animals would be!!
The second reason for all the cleaning is the health of the new foster cats or kittens. Stress can cause all sorts of physical symptoms in a cat, and we need to be absolutely sure that if anything arises, it is related to the cat itself, and not a dirty environment, or something they picked up from the previous batch of fosters.
Of course, it's all very quickly forgotten when the new cutie-pies arrive and we become smitten all over again. Next post will, I am sure, contain lots of cute photos and cooing over how wonderful the new pair are. Can't wait!
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