Foster vs. rescue
Meet
Amigo. He moved in about a month ago as the latest in a long line of my wife
Ellen’s foster dogs (100+ & counting). Those involved in the Big World of Dog Care wouldn't yet apply to word rescue
to Amigo just yet, though others often use the words interchangeably.
Foster came into English so early it was Old English, meaning food, nourishment, bringing up. It
appears to have come from the Proto-Indo European word, pa, meaning to protect and feed. Pa
also appears to be the source of the word food. In English, as early as the
1200s, foster meant to bring up
a child with parental care. By the 1300s, foster added the meaning to encourage or help grow. These
meanings apply pretty well to Amigo. He’s definitely getting nourishment, both
edible and emotional. He’s getting some parenting he hadn’t previously received,
& he is definitely receiving encouragement. Though the dictionary doesn’t
label fostering as temporary, it is considered temporary in the Big
World of Dog Care. A foster dog is being nourished and
encouraged by its foster family until a life-long home can be found. This doesn’t
always work out (a story that can be better told by the three “failed” foster
dogs asleep in our house as I type).
On
the other hand, the verb rescue came to English from the
French word rescorre in the 1200s, meaning to protect, keep safe, free, or deliver. The French word came from
Latin, & is related to the word quash, (in simplified terms, rescue
means ex-quash). The associated noun
showed up in English about a century after the verb. Though it could be
informally said that Ellen rescued Amigo from the pound, those
in the Big World of Dog Care save the word rescue for the 501c3 non-profit
groups that pull critters out of pounds and shelters, house them & promote
them to those who might eventually adopt them. Sounds a lot like fostering,
but to all those hardworking people shuffling animals around, there’s a big
difference.
Any
thoughts about rescuing, fostering, or quashing? Leave them in the comments
section.
Ahoy Chester
ReplyDeleteLove today's topic. Amigo looks great. Perhaps he will find a rescuer among your blog fans. You just never know. ypt
Ahoy Chester
ReplyDeleteLove today's topic. Amigo looks great. Perhaps he will find a rescuer among your blog fans. You just never know. ypt
Ahoy back to you T,
ReplyDeleteThanks for thinking of me (& Amigo). Twice!
Amigo has been ex-quashed for sure. Either by your lovely and dedicated wife or by who ever comes next but, bless his little furry heart, he has been ex-quashed. Love that term. And just look at that face!
ReplyDeleteHi Christine,
ReplyDeleteI have always had a fondness for the word quash, whether preceded by ex- or standing alone.
Lovely to see Amigo's smiling, ex-quashed face. I had no idea rescue and quash had similar roots. Enlightening as always!
ReplyDeleteHi Anne,
ReplyDeleteI'm glad you've joined the Quash Appreciation Club.
Interesting as always, Charlie. This made me wonder about the origins of "squash," the crushing and sporting kind, as well as the edible kind. I learned the former is directly related to "quash" and the latter is from the Narragansett word "askutasquash." Rhode Island settlers shortened the word to the last syllable. There's a blog or book waiting to be written about different etymologies of homonyms, Charlie, but it ain't gonna be written be either of us. ;-)
ReplyDeleteHey Vickie - I'm pleased you did some word sleuthing inspired by this post. I've got the title for the book -- Don't Quash the Squash!
ReplyDelete