Question
Was fostering a dog to own from a shelter and was going to get her spayed but then found out she was pregnant. Instead of returning her to get spayed and aborting the pups, we decided it was in her best health to let her birth the puppies in our home. We then got the mother spayed, yet the shelter is now claiming ownership of the pups born at our home...saying they are the Shelter's property because the mother was still their property. Do we have any claim to these pups?
Answer
Rights and obligations of foster “parents” and rescues/shelters are often contained in a foster agreement so that agreement should be carefully reviewed. Fostering, unlike adopting, implies a temporary arrangement (until the foster “parent” adopts the animal). The owner of an animal (usually the shelter/rescue until the animal is adopted) generally would also own the animal’s offspring, although rights would be up to a court to decide if a lawsuit is commenced. I hope that everyone involved considers the best interests of all of these animals.
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