Tag Archives: senior dogs

Help Your Senior Pet Live Longer

Pets don’t live forever. They don’t even live as long as humans do! If you want your pets to live a long, healthy, happy life, there are a lot of things you can do! Regular exercise will help your senior pet stay in the best shape possible. Exercise helps the heart and lungs stay healthy. It also helps prevent obesity, which can be a strain on your pet’s body. Even moderate exercise (like a couple of strolls around the neighborhood) is enough for your older pup. Exercise also helps prevent boredom, which can lead to destructive behavior. Dogs especially love … Continue reading →

When Your Dog Stops Barking

If your senior dog has stopped barking or changed his vocalizations, this may be a call for a visit to your veterinarian. Several different problems could lead to a loss of your dog’s voice. Physical Problems An inflammation affecting the throat and/or vocal cords can cause discomfort when barking. If the vocal cords lose their flexibility, the dog may be unable to make a sound when barking. A short-term voice loss may be caused by a bacterial infection. A cancer in the throat or vocal cords can have the same results — discomfort when barking or even permanent loss of … Continue reading →

Ten Reasons to Choose a Senior Pet

Thinking about adopting a pet? You may overlook an older dog or cat in favor of a young, energetic pet. However, there are many benefits to adopting a four-legged senior! Think about why the pet lost their home. Too many older dogs and cats lose their happy homes because of the death of an owner, a relationship ending, or a change in owner lifestyle. Just because a pet is at a shelter doesn’t make him a behavior problem or a bad pet. My dog Moose was surrendered by his owner because he was “too stubborn”. To me, that says the … Continue reading →

Senior Care Checklist for Dogs and Cats

As a general rule of thumb, you can consider your pet a senior if he or she is seven years old or older. However, the size of your pet can also be a factor in relative age. A larger dog (weighing more than 90 pounds) may physically be a senior by the age of five! Larger pets have more wear on their bodies. You may notice subtle changes in your pet’s behavior that could be signs of aging or could be related to manageable health conditions. Keeping track of subtle changes in your pet’s behavior can help your vet make … Continue reading →

Saying Goodbye to Miko

Don’t know who Miko is? Look here. ~~~~ Friday night was perfectly normal. TV and dinner followed, and Miko helped me eat the chicken on my salad. He curled up at my side to sleep. Saturday morning, he was gone. He had left the bed to go into the back room and drift away in peace. At first, I thought he was sleeping. But when he didn’t respond to any amount of noise I made, the horrible truth hit me. I couldn’t bring myself to leave the sunny safety of the kitchen and touch him to verify. I was afraid … Continue reading →