On October 10, 2011, I wrote a H&W column titled “THAT BLACK CAT MAY CROSS YOUR PATH,” a Halloween story. Due to the U.S. Recession in “full swing” at the time, large numbers of animals were being returned to shelters, with their owners unable to afford them. At that time, half of the 6-8 million animals in shelters were being euthanized. Statistics /chart/pet euthanasia report from April 11, 2018 revealed that year, 6.5 million animals entering U.S. shelters – 3.3 million dogs and 3.2 million cats. In 2018, some 1.5 million shelter animals (670,000 dogs and 860,00 cats) were euthanized. Statistics do reveal a sharp decline that has occurred in the past decade. Recent spaying/neuter programs and society’s change in attitude towards owning pets appears to have made the positive change, especially when one discovers that 23.4 million pets were euthanized as recently as 1970.
With COVID 19 causing a worldwide pandemic and quarantine, our country’s situation has changed again in 2020! Now huge numbers of U.S. residents of all ages are finding the need to fill their long quarantined hours loving cuddly animals. With jobs having been cut or being performed for the first time from their home setting, more time has become available for adults to obedience train even a new pup. Indeed, some of the adorable adoptees are puppies and kittens, but others are sweet animals of all ages. Some are pedigrees; some are mixed breeds. Some adoptees will become a new animal friend for an existing pet in a household. Some adopted pets will provide a necessary replacement for a recently deceased beloved senior dog or cat. But before you decide to purchase a new pet, do make sure that your health and economic situation will allow for the acceptance of a furry friend into your household. If an economic situation prevents a senior from making a full priced adoption, foster care, with financial aid provided, can become a realization for those willing to give an animal friend a loving home for as long as possible.
With the imposed coronavirus quarantine today, more than ever, a human/animal partnership is very necessary for the following reasons:
1. Domestic animals are needed to provide comfort for their senior owners. Animal friends are a superb source of companionship! It is a known fact that domestic pets can act as a support system for older people disconnected from their own families or close friends. This is especially true for seniors who live alone today.
2. With an increase in cases of anxiety and stressful thoughts about the global-spread pandemic, control of mental illness depends often upon the home environment. One long-standing research study (May, 1999), was published in the Journal of the American Geriatric Society (JAGS). The study “demonstrated that independently living seniors with pets tend to have better physical health and mental well-being than those without pets. It has been discovered then that depression, a huge medical problem for the elderly, can be controlled greatly through the aid of your furry adopted friend.
3. In addition, the taking care of your pet companion helps you to exercise your cardiovascular and skeletal systems. Whether you are walking a dog or replacing cat litter, providing fresh water and food for intake, or grooming or playing and petting with your small buddies, movement is “the name of the game.”
4. A daily routine needs to be set to accomplish all of your pet responsibilities. This, in turn, can lead to better eating and sleeping schedules for the senior owners as they become more goal-oriented and more willing to set better health standards for their own welfare.
5. In addition to the points above, with physical contact in place during the petting process, pets do help to lower their owners’ blood pressure, heart rate, and body temperatures.
Besides adopting from various excellent local animal shelters, such as Huntley’s very own on Ornesti Road, other options are available for anyone seeking a new cat or dog. Our younger son and his wife’s grieving recently over the loss of their 15-year-old golden lab, Spike, led them to adopt a 12 week old puppy of black lab-mix origin. Bill explained, “We got Hank at Wright-Way Rescue in Morton Grove. Their website is https//wright-wayrescue.org.” Bill and Jen continue in harmony “All of their adoptions are now curbside pickups, where you reserve the pet in advance (through photo, video, and written info on your iPhone/computer), then show up and they deliver the animal directly to your car. Hank was originally from Mississippi, but was rescued from there with his sister and brought to Wright-Way’s Admissions and Care Center in downstate Murphysboro, IL, which is about 350 miles South of Chicago.” Shortly after that time, with a clean bill of health, Hank found his way into the younger Koplos’ arms in the Northern suburbs.
