Could adopting a senior pet be the new norm for first-time pet owners?

Could adopting a senior pet be the new norm for first-time pet owners?

We love adoption; we spend a lot of time talking about it and a lot of time trying to work out how more donations can get to the places that need them. We also take time on our blog to talk about specific awareness days that help pets. Last year we wrote an article: Why Adopt a Senior Pet? This was for adopt a senior awareness during the month of November. This year, we’re going that little bit further and explaining why we believe adopting a senior pet should be the norm for first-time pet owners!

When animals end up in rescue shelters it’s often for the reason that an owner can’t look after them. Whether it be for their own old age and inability to provide what their animals need or whether they underestimated the amount of care an animal actually entails. This unfortunate reason puts animals in shelters all across the UK and the world.

But, we’ve had a thought.

What if, first-time pet owners adopted seniors?

What this would do is provide great new homes for the senior pets who have had to be moved into shelters because elderly owners can’t look after them. But it would do more than this. By giving first-time pet owners senior pets, they would learn all that they need to know about pet care from these veterans. The pressure of having a new pet is less because these seniors know what they’re doing and can outline what the expectations of having and looking after a pet are.

Our last article outlines our three biggest points for why adopting a senior pet is a great choice- loyalty, calmness and simplicity. These are all still so true. Having a senior in your home creates an ambience of all of these things. These pets want consistency. They want everything to be just so, making it an easier responsibility than looking after a developing kitten or puppy.

If first-time pet owners adopted seniors, they’d be providing them with a wonderful home without the pressures of looking after an animal that had recently left its mother and littermates. Rather than having to teach them how the world works with little experience of owning an animal before, a senior pet can (in their own special way) let you know what they need.  When it comes to considering adding a another pet to the home, these first-time pet owners have gained so much knowledge in the best way possible. When heading to vets, training, public interactions and everything in between, they already know what to do to help their young pet become the best they possibly can.

This also means these ‘first-time’ pet owners are less likely to then take their pets to rescue shelters because they have better knowledge before purchasing young animals. The older animals who are forced out of their homes find places to be for their retirement and fewer young pets end up in shelters too!

We think it’s a win win; what do you think?