Meet Sarah Kate Murphy — a Wake Forest freshman reigning from Tampa, Florida. Throughout her childhood, the Murphy family fostered and owned puppies, kittens, and even a lizard at one point. Murphy is continuing her passion for fostering and animal activism here on campus by getting involved in different organizations in the Wake Forest and Winston-Salem community.
HerCampus: What first got you interested in fostering animals and what made you passionate about this subject?
Sarah Kate Murphy: Basically, since I was really little, I’ve wanted to be a veterinarian, and I’m actually on the pre-vet track right now. I have always had animals [at home], I’ve had chickens, I’ve had dogs, I’ve had lizards. I’ve always had animals, and I’ve liked helping them.
HC: What have been some of the greatest challenges with fostering animals?
SKM: I’ve fostered kittens and puppies, and especially puppies have been very difficult. They are very high-energy, sometimes they have medical problems, and they go to the bathroom everywhere. They are really messy and they bite everything — they would ruin some of the stuff in the room we kept them in.
HC: How have you continued your passion for fostering animals at Wake?
SKM: I am in the WoofForest club right now, but in addition, separate from that, I am volunteering at the Forsyth Humane Society. I haven’t started doing it yet, but with the Humane Society, I’ll probably be walking the dogs, cleaning kennels, and helping people out when they are picking an animal.
HC: What has been the most rewarding experience with fostering animals?
SKM: The most rewarding experience with fostering has to be — there’s a lot of heartbreak involved — but I fostered these puppies for about two weeks and I became really attached to them. I got to see them be adopted, which is the best part, and I saw pictures with the adoptees. It’s definitely hard having to give them up, but it’s good to see them happy.
HC: Lastly, do you have any advice for people who are passionate about animals but don’t really know how to get involved on campus, at home, or in general, if they want to do something similar?
SKM: I would say people think it’s really hard to foster animals — everytime I say I foster animals, they say “Oh, how did you do that?” You just go to your local humane society’s website or even your local rescue. I’ve fostered with both the humane society and a Florida Big Dog Rescue, so honestly just getting connected through those rescues on social media and learning about what you can do — it’s really not that hard. They always need help and they are always glad to get any [help] they can get. ?