Matched Fur Life

Shirley Abbott is blind in one eye, doesn’t see so well with the other, and her hearing isn’t what it used to be. Yet during a typical morning on Bend’s west side, not far from where OSU’s new campus is taking shape, Abbott can be found on a three-wheeled bike or pushing a rolling walker, her hand gripping a long leash from which a small, black and white poodle meanders through grass, sagebrush, and around parked cars.

“This morning, she’s got her mind on hunting,” said Abbott, her East Coast roots detectable in her accent. “It’s terrible. She’s after the birdies and the chipmunks and whatever else she can find. Molly thinks she’s out hunting.”

Molly is a 3-year-old parti poodle, 12 pounds at best, who Abbott adopted when she was just a pup. The pair live together not far from her walking route in a senior apartment complex called Mountain Laurel Lodge.

As a senior living alone at the age of 80, Abbott said it’s difficult to imagine life without what’s become her most reliable companion.

“Oh my goodness, I just don’t know what I’d do without Molly,” she said.

Abbott certainly isn’t alone in her affection for her pet. Of the 71 million American households who have a pet, says the American Pet Products Association, many claim to consider their pets as members of the family. Such a bond is no doubt positive at any age, though the physical, social and emotional benefits of pet ownership are considered by some to be most essential during one’s so-called twilight years.

“The bond is unique for seniors because they often have much less going on in their lives at that point,” said Megan Gram, executive director of the Bend Spay & Neuter Project. “They’ve raised their kids, they’ve retired, they have a lot more time on their hands, and they even may have lost a significant other. A pet can give them that companionship that they don’t have as much of anymore.”

Besides the social aspect, keeping dogs and cats as pets has proven physical benefits that lead to a reduction in doctor visits — benefits such as lowering a senior’s blood pressure and stress, and reducing depression. Organizations such as The Pets for the Elderly Foundation even point to a clinical study at Brooklyn College, NY — a study from all the way back in 1980 — that concluded “the presence of a pet was the strongest social predictor of survival” for discharged heart disease patients.

“I credit the fact that I’m recovering so well on the fact that I have a dog in my life — one that cares for me,” said Judy Solomon, 76, of Bend. Over the years, Judy has battled breast cancer and heart problems but remains an active owner to Rosie, a 31-pound you-pick-it mix. “No matter what happens on any given day, I know I always have to get home to take care of that dog.”

According to Solomon, Rosie is an incredibly active dog, one that requires 3 miles of walking every day — “no matter what,” she added. Whether walking, cycling or pushing a wheeled walker, such exercise serves as the ideal yin to the yang that is the bliss of at-home companionship.

“Pets encourage seniors to be playful and to exercise,” said Lynne Ouchida, community outreach coordinator for the Humane Society of Central Oregon. “And I guarantee there’s laughter when they’re playing with pets, and that’s very powerful whether that’s from a dog, a cat, a bird or a Guinea pig.”

Getting out also opens the door to greater social interaction with not only other seniors, Ouchida said, but with people of all ages.

“Pets promote social interaction, which decreases the feeling of loneliness and isolation some seniors may feel, all while increasing morale,” she said.

Such happiness and morale, Gram pointed out, can turn even the most unlikely characters into nurturers. To illustrate this, she spoke of a World War II veteran who never missed a check-up for his dog.

“The bond between those two was extremely strong,” she said. “He would call to set an appointment for his dog, saying, ‘Oh, this is Peanut’s daddy here, and we need to bring Peanut in for a nail trim and his shots.’ It was so funny. Peanut was a chihuahua.”

And yet such attachments, especially for seniors, can be a godsend for some and a lifesaver for others. Just ask Abbott about the night Molly woke her up when the fire alarm went off in her apartment building, or listen as Solomon tells you how Rosie supported her through breast cancer treatment.

For seniors such as these, dogs, cats, birds and Guinea pigs truly are members of the family — beings that they can count on for attention, support, love and laughs. Any amount of positive research that confirms their value is met with a shrug, then quickly replaced by a personal story (or two) that essentially leads to the same conclusion.

“Just knowing there’s someone else breathing in the house beside you — someone waiting for you to come home when you’re out — that’s what I truly love about the companionship you get from having a pet,” Solomon said.