A8 Monday, June 14, 2021 — DAILY REPUBLIC
sol ano/nation
In brief Older Rockville Hills park committee sets meet
FAIRFIELD — The Rockville Hills Regional Park Citizens Advisory Committee will hold a special meeting at 3 p.m. Wednesday. The meeting will take place on Zoom or with call-in links. Those links are available on the city of Fairfield’s website, fairfield.ca.gov. For more information, call Gary Sponsler at 428-7416.
Week From Page A3 city_council. n Rio Vista City Council, 6 p.m. Tuesday, City Council chamber, City Hall, 1 Main St. Info: www.riovistacity.com/ city-council. n Travis School District Governing Board, 6 p.m. Tuesday for closed session and 6 p.m. for open session, Travis Education Center, 2775 De Ronde Drive, Fairfield. Info: travisusd.org. n Solano Irrigation District, 6 p.m. Tuesday, Lake Berryessa Room, 810 Vaca Valley Parkway, Vacaville. Info: ca-sid.civicplus.com. n Vacaville Planning Commission, 6 p.m. Tuesday, Vacaville City Hall council chamber, 650 Merchant St. Info: www.ci.vacaville.ca.us. n Suisun City Council, 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, City Council chamber, 701 Civic Center Blvd. Info: www. suisun.com/government/ city-council. n Suisun City Plann i ng C om m ission, 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, 701 Civic Center Blvd. Info: www.suisun.com/ planning-commission.
Life spans for pets
From Page A3 they’re abandoned or strays or surrendered, “they’re so confused.” They’re happy to get out of the shelters. “Half of the older ones will want to put their paws on my lap and they can’t stop wagging their tails,” Kleman said. Older cats and dogs can live full, healthy lives. Others, like people, exper ience hea lt h issues as they age. LifeLine has some older cats from time to time, and they are also harder to place than younger ones. There is some debate about how old is elderly for cats, Hirsch wrote in an email. According to the American Association of Feline Practitioners’ Senior Care Guidelines, older cats are classified as mature or middle-aged at 7 to 10 years old, as senior cats at 11 to 14 years old, and geriatric from 15 to 25 years old. Hirsch said her last three cats lived to be 17, 18 and 20. Like their human counterparts, older pets are more likely to develop agerelated health issues such as arthritis, heart, kidney and liver disease, according to the American Veterinary Medical Association. Dogs get cancer at roughly the same rate as humans, while cats typically have a lower rate. Atlanta artist Lawson Thomas Chambers had a roommate who had older dogs. In 2018 when Chambers, who prefers using a gender-neutral pronoun, decided to foster, they specifically looked for an elderly dog. Chambers “fell in love” with Akira, an older dog who had terminal cancer. Chambers shared drawings on their
Pexels
Older cats are classified as mature or middle-aged at 7 to 10 years old, as senior cats at 11 to 14 years old, and geriatric from 15 to 25 years old, according to the American Association of Feline Practitioners’ Senior Care Guildelines. social media accounts to show the “gift” that Akira brought to their world and the lessons Chambers learned. “I wanted to learn discipline and learn how to take care of a dog without necessarily caring for a puppy,” Chambers said. When Chambers first visited the LifeLine shelter, they noticed Akira because while other dogs were barking, she remained quiet. It was a 180-degree turnaround once Chambers got her home. “She had too much life for an 8-year-old pitbull with cancer,” they said. “She had a lot of personality. She was a loud, bold, stubborn woman.” Although she was ill, they noticed that when Akira went for a walk, she had boundless energy. “She was a puppy until the day she died.” Several times a month, Linda Hunt, founder of Act2Pups, sets up shop outside the Top Dogs Pet Boutique locations in Kennesaw or Canton.
Her nonprofit specializes in older dogs and those with special needs and sometimes takes “pups,” as she likes to call them, from area shelters, but she’s also found at least two from garbage cans. Her rescue does careful screening of prospective adopters, and before a dog leaves her care, it has been treated at a vet for any ailments and routine screenings. An older dog is not for everyone and she knows that. Some people open their hearts and home with the intention of giving the senior dog “all my love for the few years it has left. You can’t save them all, but the one you do save makes all the difference in the world.” Tim Gulley can’t look away when he sees a pet in need, particularly an older dog or cat. Several years ago, Gulley went past a ramshackle house in Gwinnett County when he spotted a dead dog in the driveway. Other larger dogs were milling about,
but a small Chihuahua stopped him cold. “She looked pitiful out there,” said Gulley, who has volunteered with a number of animal rescue groups. The owner planned to have her put down because she was old and sick. Gulley asked could he have her instead. As best the vet could tell, she was between 12 and 14 years old. Her spine was severely damaged. Part of her jaw was missing, so her tongue protruded from her mouth. She was anemic, dehydrated, blind, and her tiny body was battling an infection. She was less than 2 pounds, which is low even for that small breed. Today, the dog, named Nola, although still feeble, has outlived predictions. She shares a Dacula home with Gulley, a regional sales manager for a garage door opener company, his wife, Vickie, four other dogs and a cat. The pets are all senior rescues, ranging in age from 8 to perhaps 14.
It’s difficult to say what the average life span of a dog is because it varies by size and breed, as well as other factors, such as whether the dog is spayed or neutered. Chihuahuas, for example, have an average life span of about 15 years, compared to Great Danes, whose average life span is closer to 8 years. Cats are a bit more consistent (in size and age range), with the average life expectancy of cats being somewhere around 15 years if they are indoors-only cats; cats that are allowed to roam outdoors have much shorter life spans. Source: American Veterinary Medical Association
“The majority of people just want a pet,” said Gulley. “I didn’t want them as pets. I wanted to take care of them. Seniors are the most neglected, and a lot of people don’t want to deal with them.” During a recent outing to their vacation home on Lake Hartwell, Gulley filled a pill organizer for Nola, who takes five medications daily. “My heart just goes out to them,” Gulley said. “If we can get one dog adopted who needs it, wow, that would make a difference. They’ve brought me so much joy.” Michael San Filippo, a spokesman for the American Veterinary Medical Association, said that due to improved veterinary care and dietary habits, pets are living longer now than ever before. “It’s important to remember that age is not a disease; good care allows our pets to live happy, healthy and active lives in their senior years.”
