Fostering a kitten with panleukopenia is tough. Not only do you have to deal with a heart-breaking illness that too frequently results in the death of one or more of your kittens, but it doesn’t end there. You then have to sanitize your home and decide when to foster again.
Many rescues and shelters prohibit fosters who had panleukopenia from fostering for at least 1 year. They do this to because if a foster hasn’t cleaned properly, it’s possible for panleukopenia to be spread to new fosters.
This only makes sense if the rescue or shelter has a surplus of fosters for kittens. Since many areas do not have this luxury, making this choice is saying “Rather than risk a kitten may get panleukopenia, we are going to euthanize it.”
It makes more sense to educate a foster on how to clean and sanitize. I have done it repeatedly and have never had an issue. I’ve documented my cleaning practices in How to Clean and Disinfect after Panleukopenia and How to Disinfect Everything After Panleukopenia. You need to be a little paranoid to do it. Paranoia leads to repetition which I believe to be the key to my success.
It always comes down to a risk-assessment. And yes, it is extremely stressful when you take that first litter after having panleukopenia. I still stress out the first two weeks. But it’s worth the stress to keep the kittens from being euthanized.