Was talking to a lady last evening. She had tried to adopt a sibling to a kitten she has (long story). The rescue denied her because of her age. She is 66 years old. Their reasoning is that the cat might live 20 years and she most likely will not. Not sure I have ever heard of that excuse for denial from a rescue.
Annnnd that is why I, at 71, just wait until a critter gets dumped on my road or the road below and I take them in.
I get what they are saying because waaaay too often, when an elder passes away, their animals get thrown away. Dogs and cats get dumped along the road, horses and other livestock get sent to a slaughter auction.
What that rescue SHOULD do is keep accurate records and let that ladyâs family know they want the kitty back upon her passing â plain and simple but that would require extra work and follow-up on all sides-----
i still have two horses to lay to rest before I cash out. They re 23 & 24, and have been with me 12 years & 22 years respectively. I still muck stalls and brush them every day. I can only hope I remain too stubborn to become so ill that I canât care for them until their end times.
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Iâve heard of this. The rescue I foster for is leery of adopting kittens or young cats to older people, although 66 is pretty young, in my opinion. However, my rescue is also reasonable⊠if someone 70+ applies to adopt a cat and has a plan in place for the catâs long-term care (sons/daughters/friends), then they would probably not be denied an adoption. An older adopter IS a concern, though⊠grieving relatives have a lot on their minds and not everyone is a cat lover.
This would be ideal. But after 10 or 15 years, will the aging relative remember which rescue they got the cat from? Or if he/she has passed away, would the family know what rescue to contact?
In my ideal world, when I retire, I plan to focus on âseniors for seniors.â Adopting kitties who are 8+ (and harder to find homes for) to seniors who might otherwise be denied an adoption. Iâd even like to set up a small program where the rescue (me) takes the catsâand the owners, if ableâto the vet when needed. Besides, isnât it pretty common knowledge that older folks stay healthier, longer, if they have a pet to care for?!?
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I have heard of denying due to age, but 66 still seems young enough to me to adopt a dog or a cat. Many people DO live into their late 80s, early 90s, etc. Maybe have a relative come and sign contingency paperwork where they agree to care for the pet in case anything happens? I wonder if rescues with age denials do that.
@Rain I think that seniors for seniors idea is a great idea!
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Why it is so important that we have wills/estates that no only cover who might care for our children but also whaat should happen to our pets and livestock in the event of our death. This doesnât have to be how things end when we can no longer speak for ourselves. :concern:
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Sounds like that shelter isnât overly eager to adopt animals out. :rolleyes:
I was 65yo when I got 2 kittens from a local shelter - one 1yo, the other 1.5yrs.
3yrs later they are happily ensconced in my house⊠both were intended to be barncats :ambivalence:
Guess the shelter gauged my viability differently than @Joanne 's friend.
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A couple breed rescues around us do seniors for seniors fostering. The burden of the cost of dog care isnât on folks who may be only living on social security but a dog who may be difficult to place due to age gets to live in a home and get one on one attention. It does require more resources from the rescue though since they must provide more checks on the foster and the monetary needs.
That was one of our main reasons to buy into DHâs companyâs retained lawyer plan. Weâre still young but considering my career path and the fact we live decently away from family, with a rescued dog with rather expensive medical needs, we wanted to establish future care plans if something happens to us. Sheâs supposed to go back to her original rescue but most adopters donât want a slightly broken middle aged dog who needs 6+ pills a day, prescription diet, and ultrasounds ever quarter, a healthy (but reasonable) trust would help the rescue immensely .
Just be sure that if you designate someone to watch out for the welfare of your animals after you die, that the person actually will do that. I was shocked to find out that the person I would have left my animals to rehome thinks itâs ridiculous to worry about anything to do with your animals after you can no longer take care of them.
I have outlived my last animals, and am not getting more, but that person who was ridiculing another person for worrying about the fate of her animals, and saying it was stupid to care about their animals shocked me completely. Either she always thought this way, or just decided she can say what she wants to me, but sheâs out of my planning, and out of everything else, and Iâm seriously considering dumping her heartless fanny.
My last dog was adopted from the local humane society, and was found on the streets, and never claimed. It was a part of town that had many older residents, and the suspicion was that something happened to the owner, and the family got rid of everything, including the dog. Unfortunately, this was pretty common in that area, where family would get the word, come to town, sell the house, dump the furniture and pets, and take the money and leave.
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I am hoping that, when the time comes and I am hopefully in assisted living, I can share a pet with a couple of other residents.
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That is sad. My parents refuse to get any more pets at 74, because they are afraid theyâd be outlived. They know, and Iâve said, Iâd take whomever. I have a feeling, and know, if anyone showed up at their door, theyâd be brought in.
I do think it is something to consider. If someoneâs elderly, or sick, DEFINITELY, DONâT get a kitten or puppy. Itâs still an adjustment when they need to be rehomed.
My Grandma was 89, had a 14 year old former feral, when she went into assisted living. My parents took him to the vet, he needed many teeth pulled, had some bw concerns, but my mom did ask me- should she ask her mother to pay the $1,300, (which she easily had), or pts. I said ask grandma, who I knew would pay the money. 3 years later, he happily lives at my parentâs and they LOVE him.
There are so many âunwantedâ pets in the world, at 66 with no major health concerns, I definitely think they deserve a pet!!
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Thatâs too bad. I work in a cardiologists office and there are 80 year olds out there who are in better shape than some 50 year olds.
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Itâs an adjustment when they were first put into a cage in the shelter.
Its possible there are groups out there that think itâs better to PTS animals than put them in cages.
A kitten adopted for a child is just as likely to be returned to a shelter for various reasons: relocation due to job, child doesnât like it, kitten more work than anticipated, kitten claws the furniture.
Ive become more of a people-first person as I get older. I love animals but I see some things that seem out of proportion.
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My point is, with an 85 year old, chances are, a kitten will probably outlive them, or their ability to stay in their home and care for a kitten.
There is no âage cutoffâ, but people ahould be reasonable while trying to select a pet. Yes. A shelter is stressful on a pet, and thatâs probably why you donât want to send a 10 year old cat to one after itâs owner dies.
An older person is just as likely to give up a cat clawing furniture, relocation, whatever, and then you add the age/sickness on as well.
I am DEFINITELY more pro animal, than people. An animal doesnât have a say in what happens to them.
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Wow. I guess I am on the verge of âancientâ, as I am 64 years old. I guess that I had better stop riding my horse bareback (quicker and WARMER than tacking up) on the trails and roads, give up my energetic Dobermans (4, 4 1/2, and 7 1/2 years old), find homes for my 6 cats (from 4ish to elderly), and stop feeding the birds and squirrels outside.
Really.
I have thought about what I would do when I canât handle a vibrant, strong dog and have decided when I reach that age, I would adopt/foster senior Dobermans. Right now, when it is winter, there can be ice on my porch, steps, and sidewalk. Which I why I have taught them âwaitâ and âeasyâ when I go down those steps. (I go first.)
What I NEED to do is get my will written. I have already spoken to my two brothers (both are NOT pet people) and my cousin/dear friend (who IS an animal person) about what I have planned/want for whatever pets I have when I pass. Currently, I would designate my older brother (ABSOLUTELY trustworthy) to handle my estate (hah!); with my cousinâs help, I believe my wishes would be carried out.
I plan to set aside enough money for board for my horse. He has cancer, the barn owner and his wife loves him, and he may not live more than a few years, if that. My dogs would go to a specific Doberman group that I have seen will take in any Doberman, regardless of health or age. I will designate a sizable some of money as a contribution to that group. It will be hardest for my cats, as there are some bonded animals, and our local shelters/rescues/humane societies are overrun. Again though, I would designate a large amount of money to take them in (and rehome them, if it is possible).
I was told earlier this year that I would not be considered for a dog adoption by a local rescue group. It was because I use the vet services (VIP Petcare) that comes to Tractor Supply, rather than use a ânormalâ vet. Even though I could prove that my dogs had ALL of their shots, my home was adequate, and my dogs were licensed, it was worried because âwhat would I do if my dog had an emergency?â Well, I could show them two paid bills (one for over $600) for EMERGENCY services 40 miles away I had had to use, both on Sundays (one when I HAD a âregularâ vet whose telephone recording told me then to take my pet ELSEWHERE for an afterhours emergency). And personally, if I HAD an emergency during âopenâ hours for vets, I think one of the FOURTEEN veterinary offices within 5-20 minutes of my home would see my animal. And, if not, my old vet (1 1/4 hours away) or the afore mentioned emergency vet clinic would see my animal.
Indeed, when I took in a different Doberman later (who I knew didnât have shots and wasnât spayed), took her to Tractor Supply for her shots, and after being told that she was heartworm positive after her test, I was able to get her into one of those nearby vets within a few days.
Sorry for going off on a tangent. Sure, that rescue could adopt the overbred, skinny, bad-coated, terribly worn down teeth, unspayed, fearful, 7 year old blue Doberman to whomever they wished. But to suggest that I wouldnât/couldnât do the right thing for a dog IF it were sick or had an emergency, wellâŠ
Oh, and, the vet I took my heartworm positive dog to? Told me that my dog was in the early stages, that all I had to do was give her the heartworm medicine I had already bought her. And the tests at the (new) vet, x-rays, and information cost me $640+, which while expensive, I willingly paid. As, perhaps, the wheelchair or prosthetic (the dog has 3 1/2 legs) that I may get for her in the near future may be. But, again, I am not a âgood-enoughâ owner for that one, local rescue group.
P-b-b-b-t-t!
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Sheltering Hands here in Ocala has a âSeniors for Seniorsâ program. http://shelteringhands.org/get-involvedvolunteer/seniors-for-senior-program/
They place a cat in a seniorâs home and take care of the catâs medical needs as technically itâs a foster situation until the senor wants to return the cat or can no longer care for it at which time Sheltering Hands will take the cat back and find it another home. I wish every rescue would set up a similar program. It would get so many older cats into loving homes and give senior humans a reason to get out of bed in the morning.
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RHdobes563
Sounds like you have your ideas well thought out but please get a will/estate documents covering your assets as well as your pets and livestock. Iâd put the $$ for your horse in a trust rather than just give cash to the barn owners.
If you donât get all this in apropriate writing, your estate I think ends up in probate (I am not an attorney of any kind) 
and state law will dictate what happens to your assets and personal possessions regardless of how well youâve thought things through and trust that people will do what you wish.
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I have a âwrite your own willâ form that says it is legal in my state. I just have to âfill in the blanksââIâve been slack about doing so.
Eventually, I will put my brotherâs name on my bank accounts to facilitate the placing of my animals. I am lucky, as I donât know a more trustworthy man than him. He has proved it while handling my fatherâs affairs and my auntâs after they passedâmaybe because heâs an ex-Marine? 
Of course, I may outlive HIM, as he insists on scuba diving all over the world. My normal farewell greeting is, âDonât get eaten by a shark.â
This makes me shy away from the âdo goodersâ - and I do know that shelters do a very good service for stray animals.
Some of us deserve more credit for our abilities to know what is right for us and our pets.
Big point - for those who do not have ALL your papers in order, living wills, powers of attorney, wills, succession,
someone elseâs name on your safety deposit box so it cannot get slammed shut upon your demise, etc. Just do it.
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Itâs actually age-discrimination and if that woman wanted to she could protest. But that is often a no-win situation. She could also check with local vets, and with other rescues, and see if they are more enlightened and reasonable about finding good homes for the animals in their care.
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I almost was denied one of my cats (and I was early 40âs) because when they asked what I would do with the cat if something happened to me, I put that I have a will and the cat will go to one of my sisters with a lump sum of money for care and that was the wrong answer - the cat is supposed to go back to the rescue (I didnât realize it was a test :winkgrin:). They also wanted to refuse me because I have a screened in patio that I let the cats out in - that was deemed âhigh riskâ. Okay then - this was about 6 years ago. Maybe they arenât like that anymore!
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