Cheering On Amber: How a Foster Home Is Helping One Cat Get Healthy

‍

When Amber came into our care a few months ago, the first thing our team noticed was her weight. At eight and a half years old, she weighed 12.6 kg (27.8lbs), which is very overweight for a cat in her size. For Amber, those extra kilos were more than a number on a scale. Her joints were carrying a lot of strain, and the weight put her at risk of other health problems inside her body, too.

Our kennel staff gave her everything they could, and so did our community on social media, who rallied around her from the start. But a busy shelter has its limits. Space is shared, the days are full, and Amber couldn't roam freely day and night the way a cat in a home can.

That's where our foster program stepped in.

"It's really heartwarming and rewarding for me to know that sending her to foster was the best thing that possibly could have happened to her," said Abbi, Manager of the Foster Program at the HBSPCA. "She had not only the kennel staff here and everyone on social media, but now she had her foster family also supporting her through it."

In her foster home, Amber has room to walk around all day and get all the exercise she needs. It's also a calmer, quieter place than a shelter, and that matters. "We see with every animal that goes to foster, their personality shines when they're not in such an overstimulating place like the shelter can be," Abbi said.

Amber's weight loss plan is being done with care. Losing too much weight too quickly can be a shock to a cat's body, so everything is happening slowly and steadily. She's eating a special canned diet made for weight loss, which still gives her all the nutrients she needs without the extra calories. And her foster family is helping her move, too. Wand toys, interactive toys, and plenty of play get her running around the house, turning exercise into something fun.

Amber is now down to 10.8 kg (23.8 lbs) and her story has taken another happy turn: she has been adopted. Her weight loss journey is just getting started, and there's still a long road ahead, but she's beginning the next chapter in a home of her very own.

Her story is also a reminder of what foster families make possible. They give animals a place to heal, a place to be themselves, and the one-on-one attention a shelter can't always offer. For Amber, it helped set her up for a forever home.

From all of us at the Hamilton Burlington SPCA: we're cheering you on, Amber.

Interested in fostering?

Learn more about how you can help animals like Amber below!