As 2015 comes to a close, we at Grey Muzzle are taking a moment to celebrate our achievements and look forward to 2016. With the help of our supporters and partners, each year we get a little closer to realizing our vision of a world in which no old dog dies alone and afraid.
For shelters and rescues, making sure that homeless senior dogs get their second chance often involves more than finding loving people willing to open their heart and home to a senior dog. They first must provide needed medical care, and this care can cost more than shelters and rescues can afford.
No one knows the joy that adopting an older dog can bring more than the volunteers, fosters, and adopters of Young at Heart Senior Pet Adoptions, who were recently included in Jane Sobel Klonsky's Project Unconditional photo series.
A senior Shih Tzu named Maddie is one of the dogs featured in the new book My Old Dog: Rescued Pets with Remarkable Second Acts. Maddie was adopted from Grey Muzzle grantee Muttville Senior Dog Rescue. We asked her adopter, Madelon, to tell us more about Maddie's story.
Hospice fostering provides care for homeless dogs who are too old or ill to be placed for adoption. We asked Debbie Marks, a volunteer foster caretaker for Blind Dog Rescue Alliance, to tell us about what an average day is like caring for dogs with special needs.
After more than 20 years in rescue, Delaware Valley Golden Retriever Rescue knew the difficulties facing homeless senior dogs, especially puppy mill survivors. So they created a sanctuary to help every senior dog either find a forever home or live out its days with care.
Many of the dogs that end up in shelters are surrendered by owners who can no longer pay for their veterinary bills. Even for those dogs that receive care from the shelter and are adopted, this is highly traumatic. A sick senior dog is particularly at risk. Fairy Tail Endings works to keep these pets with their people.
Project Unconditional is photographer Jane Sobel Klonsky's tribute to the love we share with our older dogs. The poignant joy of her photos reminds us that the work Grey Muzzle grantees do on behalf of abandoned dogs results in dogs that find care, a home, and someone who loves them unconditionally.
Nancy LeVine's photo series Senior Dogs Across America documents senior dogs in all their variety and beauty. Earlier this year, she visited and photographed dogs at Animal Haven in New York City. We asked Animal Haven to tell us about their senior dog program and the dogs Nancy met and photographed.
In Illinois, Young at Heart Senior Pet Rescue provides older dogs who have ended up in shelters – like 17-year-old Smokey – another chance to enjoy the twilight of their lives through rescue, foster, adoption and sanctuary.
