Research in U.S. shelters shows that short-term foster programs like field trips and overnights are powerful tools for increasing dogs’ chances of adoption. Dogs who go on a field trip are five times more likely to be adopted than those who don’t, while those who go on a sleepover are an astounding 14 times more likely to be adopted. A recent study of short-term foster programs at a Brazilian shelter also showed a resulting increase in dog adoptions. 

We spoke with Lu Baldan, a PhD candidate in shelter behavioral veterinary medicine from Federal University of Parana, Brazil. As part of an internship provided by Maddie’s Fund^® while she was getting her master’s degree, Baldan worked with Dr. Erica Feuerbacher and Dr. Lisa Gunter as they researched the effects of field trips and sleepovers on American shelter dogs. 

Baldan used what she learned during her internship to create programs at an animal shelter in Brazil, presenting her findings at the International Companion Animal Management Coalition’s 5th International conference. Baldan says, “I notice how important were those programs for the shelter’s dogs and how efficient they were to promote the adoption, and I wanted to share this experience here in Brazil.” 

“The objective of this study was to adapt and apply the two international programs in Brazil with different names,” says Baldan. “Field Trip was renamed Passeio para Adoção (PA) and Sleepover is Lar Adotivo (LA). The programs were launched for the first time in Curitiba city of Parana state in a municipal shelter and the data were collected for one year.” 

The results were overwhelmingly positive. “Four dogs participated in both programs, 15 dogs participated only in PA with 80% (12/15) resulting in adoptions, and 9 dogs participated only in LA with 100% adoptions,” says Baldan. “Of these nine, seven were adopted by the same family participating in the program.” 

 Incredibly, Baldan’s biggest challenge was helping people understand the objective of the programs and participate without committing to adoption. “Despite the small number of dogs that participated,” Baldan says, “LA surprised me with the number of dogs that were adopted by the same family that participated in the program.” 

Interested in implementing a short-term foster program? Take the Short-Term Foster and Field Trips course for free from Maddie’s^® University!