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SF SPCA
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Doc is an 11-year-old senior dog, available for adoption at the SF SPCA.
Walk into any animal shelter and you'll be assaulted by adorableness, as wagging tails beg for love. Specifically, your love.
But more often than not, it's the small, spunky puppies with paws to grow into that get all the attention — and eventually a home.
As if getting older isn't hard enough, being passed over for puppies makes life all that much more of a downer for senior dogs who are living at local animal shelters.
So here's your chance to right this wrong.
It's officially Adopt a Senior Pet Month, which started nationwide with the intention of getting older dogs some love.
"Unfortunately, this is a problem all shelters encounter," Krista Maloney, spokeswoman for the SF SPCA, told
SF Weekly. "Our frail and grey-furred friends take three times as long to find a home."
If they find one at all.
The SF SPCA considers dogs over 10 years old to be seniors; currently there are only two senior dogs at the shelter, but plenty plenty of others are considered over the hill.
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SF SPCA
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Dewey is 9-years-old, and available for adoption at the SF SPCA.
"The older an animal is, the harder they are to adopt out, and the more medical care they require," Maloney said.
Maloney sent us info and links showing off a few of our local elders, all seeking a home to rest their adorable (and sometimes wrinkled) heads:
Doc is a "perky, playful" 11-year-old pooch. At 10-years-old, Sherlock is "set in his ways" and prefers to eat alone — but hey, who could resist that smile? Marco is 8-years-old, but still (slowly) attacks tennis balls with the fervor of a young pup. Dex, 8-years-old, came to the SF SPCA traumatized, and needs adopters that can "help him build up his confidence." At 9-years-old, Dewey has "energy to spare."
And, no, these elder dogs can't run as fast as the young pups, but you know what? Neither can you.
Alternatively, you can honor Adopt a Senior Pet Month by volunteering for the SF SPCA's fospice program, where you'll help take care of terminally ill pets through end of life care.
If you're interested in caring for a more aged, experienced pet who'll still offer plenty of love,
check out the SPCA's dogs and cat adoption list, here.
