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November is Adopt a Senior Pet Month

November is National Adopt a Senior Pet Month – a month dedicated to helping older pets find loving forever homes! When you decide to bring a new pet into your home, don’t limit your choices to puppies or kittens. Consider opening your heart to a senior pet instead. According to many who have, the experience has been a life changer. Many people walk into a shelter or scour their website hoping to adopt a new puppy or kitten, completely overlooking the perfectly adoptable older dogs and cats in their search.

In many cases, the absolute most difficult group of homeless pets to place are older dogs and cats. Senior pets tend to spend the longest amount of time at a shelter or rescue before finding their forever homes. Many were once the faithful companions of people who have moved to assisted living or nursing homes or have passed away. Others were surrendered due to changing circumstances for their owners or because they became difficult or inconvenient to care for. Yet, these pets still have much to offer. Yes, the silliness and energy of puppies and kittens can be fun for a while, but people often underestimate how much work they actually are. Whether it’s dealing with teething, jumping, play biting, digging, climbing, potty or litter box training or socializing, raising a puppy or kitten takes a lot of time. That can be a strain in many busy households.

Here are 10 reasons why you should adopt a senior pet:

  • When senior pets are adopted, they seem to understand that they’ve been rescued and are all the more thankful for it.
  • A senior pet’s personality has already developed, so you’ll know if he or she is a good fit for your family.
  • You CAN teach an old dog new tricks: Senior dogs have the attention span and impulse control that makes them easier to train than puppies.
  • A senior cat may very well already know basic household etiquette (like not attacking your feet at night)!
  • In particular, senior cats are often already litter trained and are less likely to “forget” where the box is.
  • A senior pet won’t grow any larger, so you’ll know exactly how much dog or cat you’re getting.
  • Senior pets are often content to just relax in your company, unlike younger pets, who may get into mischief because they’re bored. (like a teenager!).
  • Speaking of relaxing, senior pets make great napping buddies. Once they’ve settled into their new surroundings and begun to trust you, they’ll probably want a lot of snuggling, and this helps both of you to reduce anxiety.
  • Senior cats often know that scratching posts (not furniture) are for scratching and toys and for biting.
  • Older pets are some of the hardest to find homes for – so when you adopt a senior pet, you’re truly saving a life.

 

If you care about sweet senior animals, help spread the word throughout November by sharing this blog post. Together, we can help older pets find homes!

Get started by visiting www.petzgazette.com and check out our list of local pet rescues in your local area issue to find a rescue or shelter near you.

REMEMBER  –  You’ll be saving a life! (and who knows, it may save yours too!)

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