The Cortisol Study with Virginia Tech
Hearts Alive Village has partnered with PetSmart Charities and Virginia Tech’s Companion Animal Research and Education Lab to study the impacts of our Hybrid Fostering program on the wellbeing of dogs. We are looking for foster caregivers to help us collect data that will enhance the understanding and impacts of different types of foster care opportunities for shelter dogs. If you are new to fostering, this is a fantastic opportunity to ease into it with only fostering for a 5 day commitment.
For this study, 24 dogs will go through rotations between our PetSmart Everyday Adoption Center, traditional fostering, and hybrid-fostering, which is a mix of traditional fostering and dropping your dog off at our PetSmart Everyday Adoption Center.
The three groups of dogs will rotate on every 5th night to a new location (example: EAC dogs go to traditional fostering now, traditional fostering dogs go to EAC, and hybrid foster dogs move into traditional fostering situations).
What is Hybrid Fostering and how does it differ from Traditional Fostering?
Traditional fostering involves keeping a dog in your home until it is adopted. However, Hybrid fostering for this study involves not only fostering a dog in your home, but also giving your foster dog the opportunity for more visibility and to be adopted, after the study completion, at our PetSmart Everyday Adoption Center. Foster dogs are dropped off early in the morning, remain at the Every Day Adoption Center during open hours, and they are then picked up in the evening.
How You Can Help
We are looking for two types of caregivers and volunteers for 5-day periods from May 23rd through June 7th:
What’s Involved?
As a part of our team, you’ll help us track the dog’s welfare. This includes:
Study Timeline Options:
Traditional Fostering
You may choose to foster 1, 2, or 3 dogs during the 15-day study period. Each foster dog will stay in your home for a 5-day period, and you choose which time frame or frames that work best for you.
Foster Dog 1: Evening of 5/23/26 – 5/28/26
Foster Dog 2: Evening of 5/28/26 – 6/2/26
Foster Dog 3: Evening of 6/2/26 – 6/7/26
Hybrid Fostering
You may choose to foster 1, 2, or 3 dogs during the 15-day study period.
Hybrid fostering requires daily drop-off and pick-up at the Everyday Adoption Center inside PetSmart.
Daily drop-off: 8 AM – 10 AM
Daily pick-up: 4 PM – 6 PM
Hybrid foster periods:
Foster Dog 1: Evening of 5/23/26 – 5/28/26
Foster Dog 2: Evening of 5/28/26 – 6/2/26
Foster Dog 3: Evening of 6/2/26 – 6/7/26
Training and Supplies
Watch a recording of our recent Zoom session here. The session will includes how to collect the urine, the process of picking up and dropping off your foster, and a Q&A session.
Hearts Alive Village will provide all necessary supplies for the study, including, food, crate, collars, leash, and any necessary veterinary care.
Any foster that that signs up for the study by EOD on May 13th will get a $20 Visa gift card.
If you are interested in joining our team for this exciting study, please fill out the application below.
Study question contact information:
amyingstad@heartsalivevillage.org
rgilchrist@vt.edu
lisagunter@vt.edu
Want to help by being a volunteer dog transporter? Email Lina Lakoczky-Torres, Hearts Alive Village’s Volunteer & Community Engagement Manager at: volunteer@heartsalivevillage.org and in the subject line include “Dog Transportation for Hybrid Fostering Study”
You can learn more about Virginia Tech’s previous research study here and watch more info here.
