Should Seniors Get New Pets?

DHH said:
I lost my dog April of 2024. I won’t get another, and I won’t get other cats when my two are gone, mainly because I have no one who would take them if something happened to me and I wouldn’t want them to have to go back to a shelter. Also, it completely broke me when I lost my dog. I still cry for her every day. I’m not strong enough to deal with that again.
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Same for me, my one 9 year old dog left with me would not be as hard to re-home as the one I just lost. If I were younger I would
gladly get another but not at this stage in my life.
I admit I was very worried Oscar was going to out live me and with him having
Rage Syndrome - no one was going to want him. I am glad he passed in my arms.
 

@Della my father was debating on this very thing. He's in his 80s but in very poor health. He gave his 2 cats to the shelter because when he broke his hip he spent 3 months in a nursing home and his friend wasn't happy about having to take care of them cuz she worked and had to drive in each day from where she lived to do so.

He got home and wanted another cat but he wasn't sure he could take care of one anymore. I think if you're healthy enough to take care of them I see no reason why a person shouldn't get another pet. But if you're not able to care for them properly I think it should be well thought out before deciding to get one.
 
Ozzy-dog is nearly 5 years old. Whether he'll be our last dog is open to question, but for sure one of our kids would adopt a a pup if we became unable to provide care.

Cats are a no-go for us because DH is allergic, but even if he weren't I wouldn't get one at this stage of life because they tend to get underfoot.

When investigating and touring assisted living facilities in 2013 (Mom) and 2018 (FIL), all mentioned permitting small pets in residents' rooms.
 

Della said:
This is something we pet lovers have to consider as our fur babies get old and pass on and we wonder if we will be healthy enough or live long enough to start over with a new dog or cat. My own precious dog is 14, almost blind and losing hearing.

My vote is "Yes," we shouldn't spend our final years without the comfort and companionship of a dog or cat. I just looked it up and the dire statistic is that 90% of unclaimed dogs in pounds are euthanized. So if we get a dog from the pound and then find, a few years later, that we have to go into assisted living we have, at least, given the dog a reprieve from death row. I wouldn't hesitate to get one.

My father got a young Corgi from the pound when he was 80. He had dementia starting up during those years and the two of them lived a disorganized life of sharing bowls of ice cream in bed while watching old westerns on TV. When My father died six years later, neither my brothers nor I were able to take the dog and it went back to the pound, destiny unknown, but she had that six years, so I try not to feel too bad about it.
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Yes, that is something many have to consider, if they will be healthy enough to care for another pet. I am not at this point. I feel that wouldn't be fair to a dog or cat or bird for me to get one.
 
When I lost my cat-buddy 2 years ago I decided I was too old to get another. The Cat Distribution System had a different idea. A pregnant stray chose my house for her kittens. My renter guys love the idea and help feed them. We are now triying to lure them inside out of the cold but mama cat keeps them wary. They have a box on the porch and go in the crawl space for safety. They do come in and out and seem to enjoy it.

I have a friend (former neighbor) with many connections. She has offered to step in if anything happens to me. They have been neutered.mom and kittens.jpg
 
Babs2u said:
When I lost my cat-buddy 2 years ago I decided I was too old to get another. The Cat Distribution System had a different idea. A pregnant stray chose my house for her kittens. My renter guys love the idea and help feed them. We are now triying to lure them inside out of the cold but mama cat keeps them wary. They have a box on the porch and go in the crawl space for safety. They do come in and out and seem to enjoy it.

I have a friend (former neighbor) with many connections. She has offered to step in if anything happens to me. They have been neutered.View attachment 465093
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Although there are 4 kittens in the pic we only have 2. We are not quite sure who or what took the others but they were very young at the time.
 
Interesting question. Yesterday, I was in a pet shop and saw a very friendly little parrot. When I came home, I looked on-line to get more information and found that they can live to 30. I know I don't have 30 years left, so shan't be buying that bird. However, when my budgies died earlier this year, the other bird was thoroughly miserable. I had no choice but to buy him a companion but I bought another budgie because they don't have such long lives.
 
DHH said:
I lost my dog April of 2024. I won’t get another, and I won’t get other cats when my two are gone, mainly because I have no one who would take them if something happened to me and I wouldn’t want them to have to go back to a shelter. Also, it completely broke me when I lost my dog. I still cry for her every day. I’m not strong enough to deal with that again.
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Sorry for your loss and I know how significant that loss must be. But I think loving dogs can help us accept our own mortality and that of family and friends. My dog Ember is my eighth and all of the other seven have gone on out of this life.

It’s always emotional to say good bye to a loved one but the pain of it is the only way to right the scale of what we give each other. Dogs give you everything and unconditionally. We aren’t capable of returning that in kind. But we try to make them happy and most often we will have to endure their loss at the end. That’s fair.

Like you I think I have to have a backup plan now for my Ember as it is a real question now which of us will move on first. It is wise of you to take that seriously too.
 
officerripley said:
You could get a pet that you have trouble training or housebreaking, maybe doesn't get along with family members or other pets, etc.
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We only have kitties. And the one kitty that we got at one time - it would bite, so we just brought kitty back to the shelter ( although it was so sad to do so) and got another kitty. Since we only get our pets from shelters, we can bring them back if it doesn't work out.
 
officerripley said:
You could get a pet that you have trouble training or housebreaking, maybe doesn't get along with family members or other pets, etc.
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When you rescue dogs, you realize that you could have any of these problems and that you have to work with the animal. Once I got into dog rescue, I never had carpeting again, but instead had laminate flooring so any messes could be easily cleaned up.

However, you can also buy a puppy and still have all of these problems. Just like people you never know what the dog is going to grow up to be and what their personality will be like. One dog I got at six months old and luckily she was only 5 pounds because she was a terror. She bullied the other three Maltese and my sons two 80 pound dogs when they came to visit. All those dogs were afraid of her.

She was very protective of me and would even try to bite people if they hugged me. When she would do that, we’d put her in the crate and set a timer for a couple minutes just like a small child. She would behave for a few weeks and then be back to her old self. By the age of seven she had lost all her teeth through numerous dentals, and I was actually glad that she could no longer bite anybody. If she had been a big dog, I would’ve had to put her to sleep.

I’ve had dogs I had to separate for a while, but not long-term issues as far as getting along. When you rescue a dog, it takes at least three months for the dogs to settle into the home and realize what is expected of them. I have rescued dogs that have had up to five homes before me by the age of eight. Often those dogs require more patience and time to adjust and to feel safe.

For a number of years, I volunteered for a rescue group and eventually it just became too sad and exhausting. I was so disgusted with people giving up their dog because they were moving, having kids, etc.. All of my rescues have come from the these types of homes.

I also hear people say they’re no longer going to adopt a dog because they are older and what’s going to happen to the dog when they die. Even if the dog ends up back in the shelter and put to sleep at least it had a life with someone that loved it before that happened to it.

Shelters are overrun nationwide and young healthy dogs are euthanized every day in this country because of lack of homes. If I was queen of the world, I’d put a moratorium on breeding for long enough that we didn’t have to kill All these dogs while more are being bred. As you can tell, I feel passionate about this subject.
 
Teacher Terry said:
For a number of years, I volunteered for a rescue group and eventually it just became too sad and exhausting. I was so disgusted with people giving up their dog because they were moving, having kids, etc.. All of my rescues have come from the these types of homes.

I also hear people say they’re no longer going to adopt a dog because they are older and what’s going to happen to the dog when they die. Even if the dog ends up back in the shelter and put to sleep at least it had a life with someone that loved it before that happened to it.
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Bless you for the loving care you've extended these animals. As my mother often said, kindness is never wasted.

I hope the following will restore some of your faith in humanity.

One of my sons and his wife have opted to remain childless. They adopt (mostly elderly) special-need pets who require surgery, are incontinent, need insulin shots, and so forth. They usually have 2-3 dogs and sometimes a cat, as well. These animals deeply loved and are given "full boat scholarships" for the rest of their lives.

When one crosses the rainbow bridge, our entire family mourns the loss. Within a couple of weeks they reach out to their favored rescue organization to find another animal in need.

They truly are angels of mercy.
 
A senior (or anyone else) shouldn't get a pet unless they can afford to care for it, pay for it's vet visits, food, grooming, toys and be well enough to walk it at least twice daily (if it's a dog and there's no yard space). Some people get pets then realize they are not up to taking care of them, then abandon them (worst case scenario) or take them to shelters.

I have a neighbor (don't think she's a senior) who has her whole building stinking because she has four cats, at least a couple are male and they spray. She can't afford to take them to the vet to get them neutered/spayed. You can smell it as soon as you enter the building and she lives on the third floor. I'm so glad I don't live in that building! I believe she's the cause of management instituting new rules about pet ownership and new fees.
 

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