Did you know healthy neonatal kittens do NOT need to be fed every two hours? Learn about the latest guidelines for kitten feeding and other kitten care in this course. The course was developed by the Kitten College at the Animal Welfare League of Arlington in Arlington, VA to help their foster caregivers raise happy, healthy kittens. The first kitten nursery of its kind, Arlington went from saving 92 kittens a year in 2016 to over 1500 kittens in 2023. Since its inception, the Kitten College program has been implemented in a growing number of shelters and rescues across the country.  

Watching kittens grow up and become ready for their own homes is a rewarding experience. Kittens are vulnerable and require special care and daily monitoring, which you'll learn about in this course.

After successfully completing this course you will be able to:

• Prepare for the arrival of your kittens
• Monitor your kittens' health
• Provide age-appropriate housing
• Bottle feed and syringe feed
• Stimulate your kittens to eliminate
• Wean your kittens 
• Bathe your kittens
• Socialize your kittens

The course was authored by Marnie Russ, National Kitten College Program Administrator, a recognized expert on caring for at-risk kittens. In 2023, Marnie assisted UC Davis and the University of Wisconsin in updating their neonatal kitten guidelines for mass distribution.

This class takes you through the three forms of feline communication: vocalization, body language and scent. Each section provides descriptions of the various forms, along with photos and videos that help you translate what the cat is conveying.

NOTE: All Maddie's® University courses operate best on the Google Chrome browser. 

This course has been pre-approved for 2.0 hours of continuing education credits by the Association for Animal Welfare Advancement and National Animal Care & Control.

This course will give you the inside scoop on successful pet marketing. You'll learn tips and tricks for taking great photos and videos and writing social media posts that will help you find adopters for foster and shelter pets. The course is directed to foster caregivers but is equally useful for shelter staff involved in pet marketing. This course was developed in collaboration with HeARTs Speak. 

This course has been pre-approved for 0.75 Certified Animal Welfare Administrator continuing education credits by The Association for Animal Welfare Advancement.

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This class will be useful to foster caregivers and adopters, as well as foster care managers. As a foster caregiver, you can have a huge impact on the life of your foster dog. Your care and attention is critical in helping that dog find the right match. As an adopter, your new dog needs your help to make a comfortable transition to a new environment. Short videos model techniques for introducing dogs to new people, interacting with children, house training, dealing with separation anxiety, and more. It is recommended you take this class in conjunction with the class Helping a New Dog Adjust, which will give you even more training tips.

This course has been pre-approved for 1.0 Certified Animal Welfare Administrator continuing education credits by The Association for Animal Welfare Advancement.

training, behavior, dogs, puppies, foster, adopter, adoption

In this class, short videos will help you understand your dog's body language and give your dog the basic training they need to be successful in their new home. Presentations cover enrichment and boredom; jumping and mouthiness; and the special challenges of that puppies present. This class is appropriate for fosters, adopters, and the shelter staff members who work with these groups. It is recommended you take this class in conjunction with the class Bringing a New Dog Home. 

This course has been pre-approved for 0.75 Certified Animal Welfare Administrator continuing education credits by The Association for Animal Welfare Advancement.

training, behavior, dogs, puppies, foster, adopter, adoption

Housing pets in foster homes lowers their risk of getting sick because it reduces the amount of stress and exposure to infectious disease.Following proper cleaning and disinfection protocols helps lower this risk even further and prevents the spread of disease if a pet in your home is already sick. During this short class your will learn:

• The importance of proper cleaning and disinfection in foster homes
• How the type of housing and supplies affects cleaning and disinfection
• The proper way to clean and disinfect the home and supplies
• Additional considerations for infectious diseases that are harder to get rid of in the foster home

Persistent young kitten diarrhea is one of most challenging problems that foster programs face. While most cases of kitten diarrhea resolve within a week’s time, others don’t. It is not uncommon for a veterinarian to run multiple diagnostic tests without finding a cause, or to try different treatments without resolution of the diarrhea.

There are many causes of diarrhea in cats and dogs. Some, like stress and diet changes, are simple and easy to fix. Others, like inflammatory bowel disease, are more complicated to diagnose and treat. We will not go into detail on causes or prevention, but rather focus on the “how-to’s” of dealing with pets who have diarrhea.