Did you get a new dog late in life?

TinaM

TinaM

Member
I will be 67 next week (not too old yet) and my newest pups are 2 1/2 and 1 1/2. Hopefully I will be with them for a very long time. I live alone with no relatives so I will definitely have to make sure there are arrangements for them eventually.

After losing 3 senior dogs in the last 6 years, I couldn’t go through that again too soon and got puppies. One in 2022 and one in 2023. Now I’m thinking “was that a good idea?”

Hope about you? What are your experiences with new babies in your senior years?6C036D98-E975-4F17-8F8F-D28E34765191.jpeg
 

At the beginning of my membership in this forum two years ago I wrote that my wife and me never would get young cats or dogs at our age. We were 61 and 63 years at that time. What happens with the dogs, if you die in some years? Will you then have people who are accustomed to them (and vice versa) and can take them?

In my country Germany a lot of cats and dogs come to animal shelters because their owner is either no longer capable to care for them or has died.

I know that some members will be offended with my comment, but that's the opinion of both of us.
 
Fifteen years ago, at age 67, I got a gorgeous Bichon puppy, given to me by a very generous couple.
At the time, I never even gave my age a thought. I wasn’t OLD ..;)

As time went by though, I sometimes wondered how it would play out.... I worried I would die and leave my dog to a new environment. It did bother me.


Fast forward to today .. my sweet Lil’Bear died earlier this month (age 15) and I am still here, miserable about the loss, but thankful for all the memories of life with him.
 

George1959 said:
At the beginning of my membership in this forum two years ago I wrote that my wife and me never would get young cats or dogs at our age. We were 61 and 63 years at that time. What happens with the dogs, if you die in some years? Will you then have people who are accustomed to them (and vice versa) and can take them?

In my country Germany a lot of cats and dogs come to animal shelters because their owner is either no longer capable to care for them or has died.

I know that some members will be offended with my comment, but that's the opinion of both of us.
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It isn't offensive. However, adoption agencies cannot use, and IMHO should not use age as a criteria to screen out anyone over 60. It has happened to my sister, who is 72 and is a question on nearly ALL applications. That is discrimination, period.

Yet, shelters give dogs to homeless people and in Arizona, at least, we see homeless with dogs that CLEARLY are not being taken care of any better than the owner takes care of themselves: they cannot take care of themselves so why does some shelter or rehoming company think they can take care of a dog? That is abusing an animal.

Don't get me started on homeless people being incompetent or not. ;) 🤣
 
JustBonee said:
Fifteen years ago, at age 67, I got a gorgeous Bichon puppy, given to me by a very generous couple.
At the time, I never even gave my age a thought. I wasn’t OLD ..;)

As time went by though, I sometimes wondered how it would play out.... I worried I would die and leave my dog to a new environment. It did bother me.


Fast forward to today .. my sweet Lil’Bear died earlier this month (age 15) and I am still here, miserable about the loss, but thankful for all the memories of life with him.
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I'm so sorry for your loss but that is so great that you got 15 years together. What will you do now. I can’t imagine living without animals but know that one day I will be too old to care for them.
 
TinaM said:
I will be 67 next week (not too old yet) and my newest pups are 2 1/2 and 1 1/2. Hopefully I will be with them for a very long time. I live alone with no relatives so I will definitely have to make sure there are arrangements for them eventually.

After losing 3 senior dogs in the last 6 years, I couldn’t go through that again too soon and got puppies. One in 2022 and one in 2023. Now I’m thinking “was that a good idea?”

Hope about you? What are your experiences with new babies in your senior years?View attachment 398351
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Sensible to think about such arrangements. We have always had a pair of cocker spaniels, but when we said farewell to the last one a few years ago, we knew that the grim reaper might deny us enough longevity to outlive a new pup.

The scenario that you described, Tina, happened to my sister-in-law. My wife's younger sister lived alone, she passed away and her two cats might easily have met their end at the vet's surgery. My wife and I have adopted them, our cat Ruby, (she came to us on our ruby anniversary) Ruby tolerates them. But they are all quite happy and our two "orphans" have settled in well.
 
I guess I imagine that if you are a senior…and able to give adequate food and shelter….but bountiful time and love it balances out. Many many pets live in homes where people are unable to spend time with them…in my eyes this is a worse scenario than a stay at home senior. I feel that 5 good years is better than 10 so so….or bad.
 
TinaM said:
I will be 67 next week (not too old yet) and my newest pups are 2 1/2 and 1 1/2. Hopefully I will be with them for a very long time. I live alone with no relatives so I will definitely have to make sure there are arrangements for them eventually.

After losing 3 senior dogs in the last 6 years, I couldn’t go through that again too soon and got puppies. One in 2022 and one in 2023. Now I’m thinking “was that a good idea?”

Hope about you? What are your experiences with new babies in your senior years?View attachment 398351
Click to expand...


Anytime you get a fur baby, it's a good idea. ;) I couldn't imagine life without them.
 
After having 4 senior dogs dying in 2 years I got a puppy at 60 and a 5 year old dog at 65. Now 70 I will only adopt senior dogs but will never be without one. Many older cats and dogs get killed every year in shelters because of a lack of homes. My younger best friend will take mine when I die and I have left money for their care.
 
I adopted a puppy about two years ago, my age 71. She is half Havanese (a lap dog) and half Cavalier King Charles Spaniel. I didn't account for the spaniel breed and she was a quiet little thing when young. Now, she is a typical spaniel. Now and then, I think that was a mistake but it does get me up and out.

Meanwhile, the older shihtzu would be happy spending the rest of his life in my lap (age unknown but near 10?). The young spaniel does, however, get him outside and they play together which gets the older shihtzu moving, too. So it is probably a good thing for us all.

These will be my last dogs; I worry that I will die and they will be here alone for days before anybody would know. I keep a lot of water out for them, just in case.
 
My dog died on December 3, at home with my son and me, natural causes, age 14.

I do not want another dog -- I want my dog back.

Having gone through this before, I know that I will want another dog, because life without a dog just doesn't light me up.

Seriously considering not doing that because I am 68 and my health is not so great. I am thinking of alternative ways to be involved in a dog's life.
 
GoodEnuff said:
I adopted a puppy about two years ago, my age 71. She is half Havanese (a lap dog) and half Cavalier King Charles Spaniel. I didn't account for the spaniel breed and she was a quiet little thing when young. Now, she is a typical spaniel. Now and then, I think that was a mistake but it does get me up and out.

Meanwhile, the older shihtzu would be happy spending the rest of his life in my lap (age unknown but near 10?). The young spaniel does, however, get him outside and they play together which gets the older shihtzu moving, too. So it is probably a good thing for us all.

These will be my last dogs; I worry that I will die and they will be here alone for days before anybody would know. I keep a lot of water out for them, just in case.
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Enjoy your pups! I too worry about them being left alone. I always check that there are plenty of supplies for them on the kitchen floor.

Spaniels are energetic for sure. I got an Aussie mix when I was 49 and she lived for 13 years. We both started to slow down about the same time.
 
WheatenLover said:
My dog died on December 3, at home with my son and me, natural causes, age 14.

I do not want another dog -- I want my dog back.

Having gone through this before, I know that I will want another dog, because life without a dog just doesn't light me up.

Seriously considering not doing that because I am 68 and my health is not so great. I am thinking of alternative ways to be involved in a dog's life.
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I did the exact same thing. My shihtzu, Kirby, died in 2019. I swore no more dogs. That lasted about eight months before I started looking for another.
 
My rat terrier had to be put to sleep four months after my husband died. The silence was deafening. I got a wild hair one day to look at cats at the pet store which was a few steps from the restaurant where I was eating lunch. There were two eleven year old sisters whose owner had either died or gone to the nursing home. Anyway, they had been in their cage for three months. One of them was desperate for attention, constantly reaching out to be loved. I knew when I saw them they needed to go home with me.
I was 69 when I adopted them over the summer. We have been together about eight months. I knew I wanted older pets when I finally decided to adopt again because of my age. This was the perfect situation. They needed me and I definitely needed them.
 
Oldntired said:
My rat terrier had to be put to sleep four months after my husband died. The silence was deafening. I got a wild hair one day to look at cats at the pet store which was a few steps from the restaurant where I was eating lunch. There were two eleven year old sisters whose owner had either died or gone to the nursing home. Anyway, they had been in their cage for three months. One of them was desperate for attention, constantly reaching out to be loved. I knew when I saw them they needed to go home with me.
I was 69 when I adopted them over the summer. We have been together about eight months. I knew I wanted older pets when I finally decided to adopt again because of my age. This was the perfect situation. They needed me and I definitely needed them.
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Perfect!
 
I've only ever had three dogs. A beagle which I didn't have very long - a mean neighbor poisoned him. Then I had a fox terrier in the early 1960s, but he was so protective that he bit a few people and the insurance company made us get rid of him. My last dog was a Scottish terrier in the 1970s who lived to age 7, but got cancer and we had to have him euthanized.
 
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Pinky said:
Our 2 Labs used to do that .. lie under the computer desk, with their face on my feet or knees. I miss that :cry:
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It's remarkably comforting. My Golden will be three years old in two weeks. He is transitioning from that puppy stage of exuberant licking, crowding, and slobbering to a more quiet contact. I liked the puppy stuff too, but his new mood is soothing after three years of wild excitement in my presence. When we are out hiking in the woods. All of this goes away. He's got things to smell, holes to investigate, sticks and branches to carry up the trail and redistribute to new locations. He keeps track of me all the time, but being by my side is a low priority. He has to lead me by 20 or 30 yards, and just glaces back once in a while to make sure I'm still behind him.
 
TinaM said:
I will be 67 next week (not too old yet) and my newest pups are 2 1/2 and 1 1/2. Hopefully I will be with them for a very long time. I live alone with no relatives so I will definitely have to make sure there are arrangements for them eventually.

After losing 3 senior dogs in the last 6 years, I couldn’t go through that again too soon and got puppies. One in 2022 and one in 2023. Now I’m thinking “was that a good idea?”

Hope about you? What are your experiences with new babies in your senior years?View attachment 398351
Click to expand...

Hi Tina,

I got my most recent dog Ember almost four years ago when I was 68. Being around long enough to be sure she was always taken care of has been a big concern. I hadn't wanted another puppy but the more I thought about it the more sure I became that I still had enough years left to see Ember through. But you have chosen very sensible sized dogs as I also tried to do. Mine is 35 pounds, ten lighter than the one before her and 30 lighter than the one before that.

But because it was at the beginning of the pandemic and everyone wanted a dog, I couldn't get a rescue that was part heeler. That is an active breed I am familiar with as that is what the two previous dogs had been. So instead I looked at an online site which lists stock dogs of various kinds and found a littler of McNabs. They are mostly Border Collies but with something more, a breed started by a Mr McNab who came to N California in the late 1800's to start a large sheep ranch. He brought many border collies but not quite enough so he bred in some local herding talent too.

I crate trained Ember just in case she outlives me and that would make her easier to re-home. She sleeps in the crate every other night, Monday through Saturday. In between she sleeps on a dog bed outside the crate in the same downstairs hallway. And on Sundays she sleeps on dog blankets covering half my bed with me. I still think I may be long lasting enough to see her through but I've also made connections for her with some sweet dog loving people at the large dog park nearest to where we live. One friend only a bit younger than me loves border collies and has en elderly one now. She has expressed interest in being there for her should the need arise.

Good luck to us both and to our dogs!
 
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Oldntired said:
My rat terrier had to be put to sleep four months after my husband died. The silence was deafening. I got a wild hair one day to look at cats at the pet store which was a few steps from the restaurant where I was eating lunch. There were two eleven year old sisters whose owner had either died or gone to the nursing home. Anyway, they had been in their cage for three months. One of them was desperate for attention, constantly reaching out to be loved. I knew when I saw them they needed to go home with me.
I was 69 when I adopted them over the summer. We have been together about eight months. I knew I wanted older pets when I finally decided to adopt again because of my age. This was the perfect situation. They needed me and I definitely needed them.
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This was VERY kind and thoughtful of you.
 

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