Let’s Grow Old Together
Linking seniors with seniors – people and pets – is becoming a quiet trend that provides a happier life for all involved
Shelters and rescue groups across the country are offering or developing programs in which they match up harder-to-place older cats and dogs with people over 60, often reducing or eliminating the adoption fee and sometimes even paying for the animal’s annual shots and long-term medical care.
Among them:
• The Seniors for Seniors program at the Rochester and Monroe County SPCA in New York has waived adoption fees and spay/neuter charges for anyone over 60 adopting an older pet there. The shelter also has a program that offers financial assistance to fixed-income seniors who need some help caring for companion animals they already have in their homes.
• The Idaho Humane Society in Boise has a program called Pets for People, which forgoes the adoption and spay/neuter fees and initial vaccination charges when a senior adopts an older pet.
• Seattle-area PAWS places cats and dogs older than seven with seniors at a significantly reduced adoption fee, free vaccinations and some supplies.
• The Nike Animal Rescue Foundation, San Jose, Calif., has launched “Senior Pets for Seniors” in which senior citizens who adopt older cats and dogs not only get the adoption fee waived, the foundation will pay for yearly shots, dental work, medications and some other medical expenses.
Experts say it’s a win-win, since older animals are generally much less likely to be adopted, and many seniors, although lonely and perhaps even inclined to want a pet, have limited funds and can’t always manage the $100 adoption fee that is fairly customary. Some also worry that the kitten or puppy they bring into the home will outlive them.
Aging experts say seniors with pets are generally happier, healthier and more socially connected than those without pets, and seniors with dogs generally get substantially more exercise than other seniors.
In fact, studies show that pet owners have lower blood pressure than those without pets, and heart-attack patients with pets were shown to be 10 times more likely to survive beyond the first year than those without pets.
Older animals are often a good fit for seniors because they’re usually calmer, generally have lower activity needs than younger dogs and most have had some training.
On the other side of the equation, older pets can be more expensive over the years than younger animals because of the medical care they might require.
The Rochester, N.Y. shelter began its Seniors for Seniors program nearly a decade ago, says program spokesman Craig Walker, and they place 200 to 250 older animals a year. Children, on behalf of parents who have expressed an interest, usually make pet adoption inquiries.
As much as shelter personnel love finding a home for an aging animal, they work hard to make sure it’s a good match, says Walker. “Sometimes seniors will come in and pick out a particular dog because it’s a particular breed that they’ve always had,” says Walker. But a particular older animal may still be too high energy or have other traits that might not be ideal for a specific senior. So the staff works to find another animal that will be more appropriate for the person and the setting, he says.
Seniors seeking seniors should be open to various breeds, colors and even sizes, and not be devoted to a particular breed that might have been perfect decades ago.
As part of this effort to find more homes for older animals, several shelters place older animals front-and-center in the facility so they’ll catch the eyes of as many visitors as possible, and post “reduced-adoption-rate” signs next to them.
Hundreds of shelters and rescue groups publicize their seniors programs on their Web sites and through other means; many do not, and you simply contact them and ask the question.
For more information about locating senior animals or programs, or to learn more about dealing with older animals visit The Senior Dogs Project (www.srdogs.com), which lists several groups across the country that link older dogs with older people, as well as Sanctuary for Senior Dogs (www.sanctuaryforseniordogs.org), which provides information and tips about why senior animals are a great choice for senior citizens.
What’s your question? Sharon Peters would like to hear about what’s on your mind when it comes to caring for, training and loving your pet. E-mail Sharon@Pets2008.com.
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