“What is considered a ‘Senior’?”
Most of the time Vets, shelters and rescue organizations will classify an animal as a 'Senior’ if it's around age nine or ten, sometimes animals as young as seven or eight years old may be considered a "Senior". Depending on the size and breed of the dog a dog’s general life expectancy can be anywhere from 8-9 years (for very large breed dogs such as Irish Wolf Hounds and Great Danes) to as much as 20 years for smaller breeds such as Yorkies, Maltese and Miniature Poodles. Cats can easily live well over 13-14 years, especially if kept indoors. If you walk in the door at a shelter and ask them who the oldest animal is that they have there, they are going to absolutely LOVE you.
“Why do you want me to start off my pet parenting experience with an older animal?”
Because baby animals are a lot of work and can be a lot of head ache – ESPECIALLY puppies. If you’ve never had a dog before or lived with a dog and you are one of the “uninitiated” starting off with a puppy is a bad move. Puppies need an enormous amount of direction and training in order to become good family members in the home, and if you’ve never had a pet, you’re very likely not going to be up the task. Too many dogs end up in shelters or rescue because 6-12 months into it first time dog parents who opted for an 8-10 week old adorable roly-poly puppy are too overwhelmed by the energy and time it takes to get a dog trained and exercised. If you adopt an older animal, it will be well out of the “puppy” phase (and kittens can be an adorable but rough road also as far as house destruction issues that first year or so –say good bye to your drapes!). By adopting an older animal you can by-pass the house training issues, furniture, rugs and shoes being chewed up and the seemingly endless need to exercise and play with a dog in hopes of finally tiring it out.
"I want a puppy so that I know what I'm getting and can mold it into the dog I want"
Ohhhh. I see people proceed under this misconception all too often. The truth is, you DON'T really know what you're getting with a puppy. It may be a blank slate that can turn out perfect (with a LOT of time and training) or that puppy may have pre-determined personality traits or characteristics towards aggression or fear-based issues that are either genetic or have already developed from exposure to negative life experiences that you as an inexperienced dog person will not recognize when you go to meet it. These could potentially become significant behavioral problems for you in the home later on as they start to manifest when the dog gets older. Just because you pick a specific breed or get a dog very young, you can NOT make the assumption that you either know exactly what you are getting as far as disposition and behavior - because you DON'T - or that you can "craft' the dog into exactly what you want. You don't know what type of personality that puppy is going to develop as it gets older. If you are a first time dog parent, you should not assume that you have the experience and know-how to GUIDE that dog into being the best possible family member you could have. On the other hand, if you go to meet an older dog, what you see is pretty much going to be what you get. That older dog (or cat - this all applies to kittens and cats as well as puppies and dogs) is going to be whoever it is he or she was going to become and you can take things at face value. If he or she doesn't like other dogs, or cats or certain people, or is frightened by certain sounds or hates walking in the rain etc., you're going to know it. All of that will be firmly established. And you will have a MUCH better idea of who you will be bringing home to live with you than you will if you get yourself a baby animal. When you adopt an older dog, you've got a much better chance of finding a pooch that already has the qualities, behavior and personality traits you are looking for.
“But an older dog won’t live that long…”
PRECISELY! Yes, when you bring that older dog home, you know you have a much smaller window of time with it as your pet and that it’s going to break your heart sooner rather than later. But any pet you bring into your home is going to break your heart when they leave you eventually. We outlive our pets, as a cruel and general life rule. But the benefit to this scenario if you’ve never had a pet before is that you are not making a long term/life-time-of-the-animal commitment that can easily be 15-20 years. If you’ve never had a pet before you can’t be sure that the responsibility is going to be for you. The benefit of knowing you’re entering into this world of pet-parenthood on your first go-round on a short-term basis is that if you realize that your lifestyle present or future really won’t allow for a pet long-term, you’ve learned that valuable lesson before diving into a commitment and responsibility to the animal that may last close to two decades.
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Chance (adopted at age 15) was blind, deaf, arthritic, had
congestive heart failure and kidney failure, yet went for long slow walks in
the park every day and loved to sniff flowers and ride around in the car with
the windows down catching a breeze in the back seat. He attended softball
games, BBQ's, made trips to Maine & Cape Cod, loved the beach and even went
swimming in a pool! He had a great six months of a new life after adoption and
made the most of every single day.
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Yes, PRECISELY again! Go ahead and get a puppy today. There’s no guarantee that the puppy isn’t going to have health issues as soon as you bring it home, but hopefully you’ll get lucky and that won't happen. What I can promise you is that in 10-15 years, that fluff-ball puppy is going to be an elderly animal with health issues. It’s coming at some point down the pike for that new puppy or kitten, just like old age health issues come to us humans. The two-fold benefit to starting with an older animal is that you’re going to get a really good understanding right off the bat of what you will be in for long-term as far as Vet bills and medical care, and it’s sort of a practice run for you. You’re going to go through a very difficult test that will determine for you if you can or want to be up to the task of taking care of a geriatric animal and all the special care needs that come with it. It’s not going to be easy, but I can promise you it’s going to give you the warm and fuzzies.
The second benefit to this is that as you care for an older animal, you’re going to learn a lot about overall health issues that take a lifetime to develop. You will likely see an older animal that has dental issues, perhaps heart problems, kidney problems, arthritis, vision or hearing loss, just to name a few. Being familiar with the overall end of life cycle and health problems that come along with it will help you later on take excellent care of any younger dogs or cats that you may choose to have. You’ll have a better understanding of what the pet may face as it ages and how exercise, high quality diet and a healthy lifestyle can keep that young animal healthy and happy longer. And when that puppy or kitten’s older days come, you’ll be well prepared to deal with them and help them have the best golden years possible.
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Daisy (adopted at age 13) liked to sleep a lot...especially in
the sun. Daisy had a wonderful 16 months in a loving home after adoption.
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Don’t be so sure that an older dog will automatically be a snoozing couch potato. Many shelters and rescue orgs post profiles for 8-9-10 year old dogs that are still very frisky and love to go for walks and play. Don’t assume that age is a barrier to that. In 2011 I adopted my third Senior dog in a row, Cozy the MaltiPoo. I took her assuming that at age ten, she would sleep most of the day and not need a lot of exercise, much like the previous two I’d had. Boy was I wrong! And boy was I GLAD! Cozy was the twelve pound Senior equivalent of a two year old dog, and now five years later she is still happy, active and playful. Her nickname is “Turbo”. We still go on long walks every day and she keeps me on my toes. You can find a Senior that *will* be a couch potato most of the time – and that may very well be just what you’re looking for - and you can also find a Senior that will want to participate in your active life with you. They’re out there, believe me! I lost 20 pounds the first three months I had Cozy from all the extra long fast-paced walks we were going on daily.
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Cozy adopted at age 10- seen here at age 12 after swimming in a
pond and rolling in mud. In June of 2016 - at age 15 - Cosette is still amazing
everyone by going strong despite a diagnosis of significant heart problems and
a lung tumor. Rolling in the grass, going for long walks, riding around with
her head out the car window, running on the beach, throwing her toys around the
living room, hanging out with her dog friends, playing with the resident kitten
and chasing bunnies, birds and squirrels are all still in her daily repertoire.
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Lastly and most importantly, the reason I want you to adopt an older pet is this: These Seniors are the forgotten ones that nobody wants. They get walked past, overlooked, and passed by as they languish in a cage. It's something of a crisis situation for shelters to deal with these older pets, because it is so hard to find them homes and the staff knows their time is running out. They are the "un-adoptables" and they need rescuing the most. They are usually the first ones euthanized in high-kill shelters that need to make room for younger more adoptable dogs. They are often in the shelter because they lived with an older person who has either passed away or gone into a nursing home, or they’ve been abandoned and dumped at the shelter simply due to their age. It’s heartbreaking and devastating to see older animals have to live the duration of their lives out in a shelter cage. When I tell you it's gut-wrenching to see elderly animals in a shelter sad, confused and depressed, proabably not feeling well for one reason or another, missing their home and family not understanding what's happened to them, frightened by the shelter environment, or perhaps having spent most of their life living in that shelter in many cases, never even knowing what it's like to have a home and family to love them, "gut-wrenching" is an enormous understatement. Until you do it, you cannot possibly know how amazing you’re going to feel inside when you bring home an older dog or cat that just wants a soft, safe place to land where they can spend their golden years. I can assure you that you will not regret it. There are no words sufficient to describe the pay-off you will feel, and the love and gratitude you get in return will burst your heart open in the best way. There's nothing quite like seeing the joy and appreciation of an elderly animal when they are sprung from a shelter and get a new lease on life in a loving home. They definitely KNOW and they definitely APPRECIATE it.
Just do it.
Tips for bringing home an older pet:
*Ask a friend, family member or neighbor who has an older animal what some of the issues are and how they handle them. Offer to do some pet care for them so that you get a feel for the hands-on stuff and what it involves to decide if you’re up to it. Observe how they handle mobility issues (can the dog go up and down stairs, or get in and out of the car or even outside to eliminate on its own?), find out what kind of meds the dog or cat needs and how they are administered (insulin for diabetes is a common one - can you deal with needles?), and see how they manage any incontinence issues the pet may have (diapers? wee wee pads?). Offer to stay with the pet for a weekend if they're going away so that you get a good taste of what 'round the clock care is going to be like for an older pet...and then remember that whatever young animal your bring home is going to eventually get there someday too. This is your test run. It's like watching how your Parents take care of you elderly Grandparents so that you know how to take care of your own Parents when it comes time. If you don't know anyone with an elderly pet, try fostering one for a local shelter. It's not a permanent commitment and if you decide you just can't do it, they can take the pet back. If there's one at a shelter near you, I can guarantee you the staff will be over the moon at the idea the pet could go spend time in a real home environment.
*Go to several local shelters and ask them about the Seniors they have there. See if they have any kind of Senior Foster or Senior Adoption program where they will help with medical care and costs. Many well funded shelters are so happy to get these older pets back into loving homes that they have funds set aside to provide the medical care for them. This will usually involve the caveat that the pet has to see the Shelter or rescue org’s own Vets, and that may not be the option you prefer, but see how they can work with you. Often these older pets will come with significantly reduced adoption fees. (When I adopted Chance the shelter staff and Manager were so ecstatic that ANYone came for him that they waived the already reduced $40 adoption fee and just sent him home with me.)
*Make sure that you have a good Vet lined up and the funds for Vet bills. You may be able to find pet insurance even for a Senior animal, there are many more pet insurance plan options these days and some do not have any age restrictions. Also take into consideration all the possible supplies you may need for a Senior pet such as special bedding, pet steps for smaller animals, carpeting for traction around the house and food bowls etc.
*Seek a Senior that fits your lifestyle. If you’re lower activity/energy, look for one of those couch potatoes that’s content to sleep a lot. If you want a dog or cat that engages, look for one that’s still active. They’re out there and they need homes!
Adopt a Senior – you won’t regret it!
Helpful Resources:
The Gray Muzzle Foundation
Susie’sSenior Dogs
SanctuaryFor Senior Dogs
The SeniorDogs Project
Find Your New Senior on PetFinder
Deirdre Curran has been a Professional Dog Walker/Pet Sitter since 2003. She truly has "seen it all" and now also offers pet care consultation services in person and via phone, email & Skype. You should contact her BEFORE you get the dog!
Email Deirdre with questions, blog topic suggestions or requests to test and review pet-care related products at: askthedogwalker@gmail.com
For more info visit her web site: www.askthedogwalker.com
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Please feel free to leave *respectful* comments and questions below. Share your own Senior Adoption experiences!
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