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You can self-quarantine with a foster dog for free

San Antonio Animal Care Services encourages community to help foster animals during COVID-19

SAN ANTONIO – Since the “Stay Home, Work Safe” order has many of us stuck at home, why not help foster an animal in need?

Hundreds of animals are in need of a home and could prove to be the perfect companion to help get you through the COVID-19 pandemic.

Jared Hoeing is a producer for KSAT 12’s Good Morning San Antonio. With all the coronavirus developments, he knew he needed a mental break.

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“I was putting together a show and came across an article on our website about how there’s a big need for fosters right now,” Hoeing said.

Hoeing, along with his girlfriend, Gretel, answered the call to help foster one of hundreds of animals in need of a safe home.

“It’s so much nicer to go home and know that it’s a way to naturally get away from all the talk about the coronavirus,” Hoeing said.

Hoeing along with his girlfriend, Gretel, adopted one of hundreds of animals in need of a safe home during the "Stay Home, Work Safe" order. (KSAT 12)

He set up an appointment online and while on their search for a dog, they fell in love with a black German Shepherd mix.

“He is as excited as could possibly be,” Hoeing said. He jumps up on me (and) licks my face.”

These San Antonio-based dogs are up for adoption and in need of a good home

Their connection with the dog was so strong they decided to adopt him and name him after an Italian Renaissance writer, Giovanni Bocaccio.

“My dog’s name is Bocaccio,” Hoeing said. “What a better pandemic name than an Italian renaissance artist who wrote about the Black Death in Florence?”

Claudia Balarin with San Antonio Animal Care Services hopes that hundreds more families will step up during this time to help dogs like Bocaccio.

“The dogs that we have here are all companion animals so, they’re going to be the perfect buddy that you need,” Balarin said.

Dannie is one of the many animals in need of a family at San Antonio Animal Care Services. Dannie is described as a calm girl, perhaps the perfect couch potato and self-quarantine buddy. (KSAT 12)

Those interested in the free ACS foster program can fill out an application online by clicking here.

“We’ll provide you with food, bowls, anything you need. We just ask for your time and your home,” Balarin said.

San Antonio Animal Care Services encourages community to help foster animals like Daisy during COVID-19. (KSAT 12)

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For more information on the ACS services offered during the “Stay Home, Work Safe” order, click here.

COVID-19, the respiratory disease caused by the new virus, stands for coronavirus disease 2019. The disease first appeared in late 2019 in Wuhan, China, but spread around the world in early 2020, causing the World Health Organization to declare a pandemic in March.

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About the Authors
Alicia Barrera headshot

Alicia Barrera is a KSAT 12 News reporter and anchor. She is also a co-host of the streaming show KSAT News Now. Alicia is a first-generation Mexican-American, fluent in both Spanish and English with a bachelor's degree from Our Lady of the Lake University. She enjoys reading books, traveling solo across Mexico and spending time with family.

Azian Bermea headshot

Azian Bermea is a photojournalist at KSAT.

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