I am a serial foster daddy. I started fostering dogs back in 2021 when I started living on my own in my first ever one-bedroom apartment. At the time, I felt like my own girl Bella needed a friend. I was not ready to commit long-term to a second dog and figured fostering was a great way to give back to the dog community and help. There are several rescues, shelters, and animal advocacy groups in San Diego. Many big ones are well organized, with plenty of volunteers. My primary intention was to commit to a smaller organization where my efforts would feel more important. I wanted to have more of an impact—host my own adoption events, advocate for the pup, document on social media, and really provide much more in-depth care for the dog. Larger organizations have more volunteers, more adoption events, and more resources in general to assist in fostering. I wanted to work with smaller organizations that had fewer people, fewer events, and fewer resources because I wanted to feel more important and more vital to the success of the dog getting adopted.

My first dog was a black pittie male associated with "Find My Dog a Home" and I fostered Nova from Sept 2021 until July 2022 when she got her forever home.

My second dog was a black pittie male associated with "Philozoia" and I fostered Chance (now Goose) from Aug 2022 until September 2022 when my best friends in San Diego adopted him.

My third dog was a black pittie male associated with "Philozoia" and I fostered Reggie from Nov 2022 until July 2023 when he got his forever home.

My fourth dog was a grey/white pittie female associated with "Love Legacy Rescue" and I fostered Nala from October 2023 until July 2024 when I decided to keep her for myself :)

Larry is my fifth dog and is a grey/white pittie male associated with "Philozoia" and I have been fostering him from September 2024 until current (June 2025).

When I initially started fostering dogs, I was working full-time remote and making about 2x as much as I do today. Since my initial foster gig in Sept 2021, I have been laid off twice (not performance-related—just industry layoffs impacted by COVID) and I make 50% less. In addition to the layoffs and the impact on my finances, I no longer work remotely. Due to layoffs, a challenging market for the unemployed, and a lack of remote work that was once in high demand in my area of expertise, I no longer work remotely. I spent all of 2024 without pay and much of 2022 without pay. I am NOT COMPLAINING.

I am extremely grateful to have a job and recurring weekly paychecks, but my new job requires heavy travel. Tuesday through Friday of each week, I am on the road spending time in my territory (San Diego, LA, OC, Riverside, Palm Springs, Joshua Tree, most of SoCal). This new work environment is one I am not used to. I have worked largely remote since 2015 and this new time away from home on a regular basis is difficult to manage not only with just one dog... BUT THREE.

I'm simply painting a picture. I no longer have the means to provide the type of foster care that my initial moral commitment set out to do. As a foster, I LOVE showering these dogs with the best life. Tons of activity. Tons of TLC. Tons of ways to promote them to the world for a chance to find their best friend. In my current schedule, I can no longer do that. I am now having to find daily care for all of my dogs. This requires planning, a significant increase in budget, and someone who is regularly available and knows how to handle 3 big a** pitbulls lol.

I'm truly devastated about all of this. This is my first time withdrawing my foster daddy duties. This is my first time I didn't see it through. This is the first time I've failed these doggies (who need us now more than ever). In my defense, I initially opted to assist with Larry for 1 month. However, things changed when Philozoia rescue burnt down in the LA fires.

I feel absolutely terrible that I'm passing Larry off to another foster. I wish I could continue my duties but my focus right now needs to be on my work so that I am not impacted by another layoff. There is another foster lined up and willing to care for Larry. I am extremely grateful for other people out there like me. I know and trust he will be in the right hands. To smooth the transition and show gratitude towards the new foster, I want to make sure this foster is financially secure to handle Larry for the next several months. As such, all of these funds will be for continuing care for Larry.

I can no longer commit to Larry's care but morally I will continue to financially support Larry in his new home. Your donations will support the following items I have committed to funding on behalf of Larry:

1. Larry's Food - Larry is 75 pounds. He's a big boy and as such he requires a lot of food. I have all of my dogs on an extremely healthy (but costly) organic diet. Each week Larry's portion alone costs on average about $50 a week or $200 a month.

2. Larry's Medicine - Larry's never had a forever family. As such, a lot of his care has been ignored much of his life. He has many lingering health conditions: ear infection, tooth infection, skin growths, and constant itching. He requires daily ear drops, daily ear cleanings, daily supplements for gut health and skin irritation, and very specific shampoo for his coat and reducing itching. Larry's overall cost for medicine and daily maintenance of his conditions is roughly $50 a month.

3. Larry's Miscellaneous - When you foster, things come up. Random vet bills, random pet sitting (for personal or work trips), and regular random purchases for bones, treats, toys, beds, laundry detergent, cleaning supplies, etc. It's truly hard to predict a cost for all of this but I would say conservatively the average monthly spend for other foster responsibilities is roughly $50 a month.

My goal is to provide the new foster with an upfront donation of $1,800 to care for Larry (this is roughly 6 months of care). This will cover all of his food, meds, and miscellaneous costs to ensure there are no setbacks, regrets, or change of mind in caring for Larry. Your donations to the cause are extremely important and I appreciate any and all donations, no matter the size.

Thank you for your trust and support in what I do for the animal community. This is a small bump in the road for me and I will be taking the time I get back to rethink and adjust how I can continue to support the dog community. Fostering appears to be off the table but there are so many dogs that need saving. I WILL find additional ways to help and look forward to showing my community what I can bring to the table next! THANK YOU!!