For rescue professionals, this week is a call to action.
Despite best efforts to get folks to people to recognize that they should provide the same loyalty to their old dogs as they have shown to them, there are more older dogs being dumped in shelters than ever before. Some of the excuses, include:
- We just got a new puppy and they don't get along.
- He sleeps a lot.
- She is having more accidents on the rug.
- Hes' old.
Let's explore each of these:
- The puppy excuse - Anyone who doesn't put in the effort to get this to work has no business owning one door, never mind two.
- More sleep than usual - Be grateful that you don't need to expend as much effort exercising your dog. Stress and more exercise added over a short period of time will contribute to your dog playing catch up with the Zzzzs.
- Accidents - As dogs get older, weakened muscle mass contributes to loss of bladder control. Check with your vet. Taking them out more often or training them to use pee pads is the way to go, not sending them to death row.
- He's old. - Not an excuse. Your dog may be old, but you're the one who has forgotten a lifetime of love that they've given you.
If you're in the market for a dog now that the holidays have finished or are a with a rescue, I'd like to ask you not go with the easy choice and adopt (or heaven forbid, buy) a younger dog. There are plenty of folks who will will go with that safe choice. This year choose to be unpredictable and get that senior dog who doesn't understand why their family dumped them.
Be a maverick. Take a chance. Save a life.
