Myself and my partner have been mulling over getting another dog as a companion for our 3 year old Lab.

We have spoken about fostering but are not sure of the details involved.

We both work full time, however my partner owns his own shop so arranges his hours around mine so our pooch is not left for too long. Aalso my mum and dad live 10 doors away and pop up to keep our pooch company every few hours.

We also have 2 cats so would only be able to take dogs which are cat friendly.

Would we be suitable?

I think so - have a word with Rain Rescue :)

Yes - probably you would - its just a case of getting a dog that could/would be able to slot into your set-up and life style.

However - cat friendly dogs, and those that are happy to be left for long periods of time - aren't usually waiting in our rescue for very long. Sometimes they are - but mostly they are what a lot of people are after.

Thanks for thinking - you could always foster a cat - we are often desperate for good cat fosterers.

The biggest issue with fostering (speaking as someone who both fosters and who manages fosterers) is giving them up again when it's time to.

If you take them as a foster but then fall in love and adopt them then you're not a fosterer ;)

But seriously, if you can find it in your hearts to take in an animal that needs love, guidance and help to get them into a position where they can be rehomed, then that is a fabulous thing. Not everybody can do it, not everybody can live with what has previously happened to the animal or what is happening to thousands of animals in rescue, some people struggle with the potential unpredictability of the animal's behaviour when they take them in.

99% of foster animals are fabulous beasties trapped behind the bars of their abuse or abandonment, but there is always the 1% who are going to struggle for whatever reason and the possibility that the animal that they get is going to be in that 1% does feel a bit threatening to some people.

If you are confident that you can help the animal to settle in and can improve their lot, and you have the necessary time available to make them feel really at home and manage any issues that they (or your other animals) may have, then I'm sure that you will be hot property for any number of rescues :)