Operation Foster arrives in Gunnison

Here in the Gunnison Valley, it’s well known that pets are family. This is a community that values connection on all fronts, no matter the species.

There are also more than 700 veterans in the valley, many of whom have a furry friend of their own.

Operation Foster, a service of PACT, offers peace of mind to service members, current or past, facing deployment or in need of mental health services.

Gisele Fetterman, the director of strategic partnership and development at Operation Foster, or PACT for Animals, said she sees the distress of veteran pet owners all over the nation.

She mentioned a call they received recently from a suicidal veteran who claimed the only reason he was still hanging on was because there would be no one to care for his dog. The organization quickly found a foster home for the pooch and helped the veteran find proper mental health assistance.

There have been many inquiries from the state of Colorado, one even coming from a service member at Western.

Operation Foster partners with Roger, the national suicide hotline for veterans. The two services point to each other when someone reaches out needing help with a pet or with themselves.

When service members are deployed, they often have to surrender their pets to shelters, a permanent act. Twenty-five percent of pets at shelters are surrendered.

This can be traumatic for the owners and pets. Similarly, when veterans need mental health assistance or are sent to a mental health facility, their pets are also surrendered from their care.

Operation Foster was founded in 2011 by a shelter volunteer to combat that.

Anyone can apply to be a foster parent to a surrendered pet, and it’s all free. After a background check and a chat with references to make sure everyone is safe and reliable, pets and foster parents are matched up based on personalities and needs.

No costs, not even the price of food or transportation, stand in the way of either the service member or the foster parent.

“They just have to be ready with a belly rub and lots of love to give them,” said Fetterman. “Whatever it is that is your family member, we will find someone to take care of it and love it while you’re out there serving or healing.”

Operation Foster has a 100 percent success rate, meaning all pets sent into foster care have been returned to their owner after their service or care. Life long relationships are established through this service as well, said Fetterman. 

“We have families that are still sending photos years after they are matched,” communities are built and stand the test of time through the love and devotion to a four legged, or no legged friend. 

Visit pactforanimals.org to apply to become a foster, or for foster assistance.