There is a narrative that I don't like and it goes a little something like this. That old dogs have lived a full life and they don't have much to offer anymore. And so it's ok to let them go, replace them with a younger dog and give up on them. That couldn't be further from the truth.
If you felt anything through the pictures and videos of Lady I shared on my new (and old) Instagram account, or if you followed along way before when I had Bartles and even Piri, you can see first hand that at 15 years old (14 when she was adopted) she still had so much more to live and so much more to give to me and Yangkyu and everyone she met. She was Spootie and Clover’s parents favorite and they loved that she loved them so much.
I remember the guarded response everyone had when we let them know that we adopted another senior dog. A 14 year old. Even older than Bartles when we adopted him. But when they met her, I think Lady broke every stereotype that people have about adopting senior dogs. And everyone fell in love with her immediately.
Lady came to live with us because of a promise that I had made to an old 17 year old cancer ridden, kidney disease stricken cocker spaniel named Piri. There were many nights when Yangkyu and I would give him his sub-q fluids and me wondering if something were to happen to us, if a family would step up and give Piri a home, despite his age, despite his medical needs and total hands on care. Despite the fact that he couldn't hear or see well. Because even though he got bone skinny, at 17 he was still trotting and running whenever he saw his favorite human in the whole entire world come home. Because there was still so much life in him. And so when we said our final good-bye to him, I promised that I would never overlook an old dog. Or an old sick dog. And that from here on out I would only adopt frosted faces which have become so endearing to me.
One of the most rewarding things about this journey we've had is receiving random messages from people who tell me their stories of raising awareness on senior pet adoption. One woman wrote to let me know that after following our stories, she convinced her mother to adopt a senior dog from the shelter who is now the most beloved member of the family. I also had another person who told me they are inspired to rescue and adopt senior dogs and that it is directly because of our family. And another who told me that their next pet will be a senior.
Our efforts doesn't have been grand or large in scale. Simply talking about senior pets to five of our friends, our family, help change mindsets and quite possibly helps saves lives.
So if you or someone you know is looking to adopt a pet this month, don't overlook the frosted faces. They have so much love still to give.
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