First Coast No More Homeless Pets (FCNMHP) received bark-worthy news recently when The Grey Muzzle Organization, a national nonprofit, awarded them a $10,000 grant. The grant funds charitable veterinary care and other necessities for senior dogs whose owners cannot afford treatment but desperately want to keep their pets. It also provides specific care for senior dogs in shelters to make them more adoptable.
Adoption rates for senior pets (7+ years old) are lower than all other age groups combined: only about 50% of senior dogs find homes. Their chances of adoption can also be hurt by the possible need for additional veterinarian services or specialized care; providing those necessities greatly decreases their chances of adoption.
Believing they must surrender a pet can cause debilitating stress for pet owners and this separation can negatively impact the owner as well.
“An unwanted separation from a pet can be devastating for an owner,” said Jennifer Applebaum. “We recommend that people who own pets be supported in keeping them.”
Health benefits of senior pet ownership
Applebaum, PhD, MA, MS is a fellow at the NIH and a professor at the University of Florida Department of Environmental & Global Health. She led UF, University of Michigan, and Virginia Commonwealth researchers in a study of 1,300 senior citizens aged 50 or older. Those subjects were part of the NIH Health and Retirement Study that tracked 20,000 U.S. adults to learn about pet ownership and aging-related issues. The study included primarily dogs but also cats and other pets.
The report found that senior pets offer lifetime benefits for owners’ physical and emotional well-being, especially for senior citizens with whom they naturally have much in common. Senior pets typically move at a slower, more careful pace with an energy level that adapts to their owner’s activity level. Senior pets are often calmer, fully trained, and in sync with the daily routine of their families, allowing them to become a constant source of stress and anxiety reduction, companionship, unconditional acceptance, and support.
The “Journal of American Medicine” January 2024 issue reported results from an eight-year study showing pet ownership’s direct effects on aging issues. The English Longitudinal Study of Aging showed a slower decline in cognitive scores for those who owned pets for at least five years, with increasing benefits for long-term pet owners.
Pets served as a “stress buffer,” preserving verbal memory, fluency, and mental and physical function. Among those who lived alone, pet ownership significantly enhanced overall well-being and reduced loneliness – a risk factor for dementia and cognitive decline.
Putting grant funds to use
FCNMHP CEO Jennifer Barker announced the grant award and explained how it will help keep Jacksonville senior pets healthy as they age while ensuring they can enjoy their golden years with those who love them. Barker is a proud foster failure with several dog and cat rescues, including her much-loved senior dog Layla, a 10-year-old mixed-breed rescue poodle. Barker explained how this issue hits home for her because she simply cannot imagine her own family without their pets.
“We are so grateful for this generous grant because it will help us give senior dogs the veterinary, dental, or other care they need. The Grey Muzzle Organization grant is important because it is one of the few that target aging pets whose owners cannot afford necessary care,” Barker said. “This generous grant helps ensure that owners can keep the pet they love so much.”
Since 2008, Grey Muzzle Organization has worked for “a world where every senior dog thrives, and no old dog dies alone and afraid” by distributing more than $5.6 million in grants. It is the largest national nonprofit focused on the well-being of senior dogs who need help.
The impact of First Coast No More Homeless Pets
FCNMHP was founded in 2002 and expanded to two Jacksonville locations on Cassat and Norwood avenues. One of the largest spay/neuter facilities in the U.S., the organization is recognized as one of the largest safety-net teaching veterinary hospitals in Northeast Florida and Southeast Georgia.
Their goal is to ensure that no senior pet will ever be surrendered to shelters or euthanized due to an owner’s inability to afford veterinarian care or supplies. To further that mission, FCNMHP provides more than $425,000 in charitable care to senior animals in need each year. They provide services to approximately 74,000 dogs and cats, perform nearly 23,000 spay/neuter surgeries, and distribute 120,000 pounds of free pet food.
Other community services they offer behind the scenes include professional and paraprofessional educational opportunities and cooperative collaborations with domestic pet rescue organizations throughout the region to help prepare thousands of animals for successful adoption.
