The Bakersfield Voice

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Not that long ago, an adult choosing to move to a retirement community, as a means to relieve the stressors of maintaining a home, found there was one additional possession he or she would be relieved of — their pet.

Thankfully, that’s no longer the case for many retirement communities in Bakersfield and beyond. With the increasing integration of pets into the lives of people and ever-mounting evidence for the benefits of having pets in our lives, it makes sense that keeping pets and owners together equals a whole far greater than the sum of its parts.

In 1999 a study was published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society demonstrating the value pets have in the lives of seniors. Among other findings, seniors who have pets tend to have better mental and physical wellbeing than those who do not. They tend to be more physically active, better at coping with stressful situations, and have better overall health.

Reasons behind these health benefits may not be that hard to understand. Pets require a certain level of routine care. From making sure they are properly fed, to cleaning the litter box or taking the dog out for a potty break, the presence of a pet means an owner must perform the day-to-day tasks of caring for them. For seniors, even that level of activity assists the body in a positive way. A pet can also be a key ally for emotional health, particularly if no immediate family members are nearby. A pet provides a living, breathing being with whom seniors can engage and interact, and the routines pets inspire can, for some seniors, be the thing that quite literally gets them out of bed in the morning.

It seems only natural that pet lovers will want to have a pet through the whole of their days, if they are able to do so. A quick phone call to several local retirement facilities found that many are happy to allow a pet, although there may be size restrictions or additional deposits needed. If you are considering moving to a retirement facility and wish to bring your pet, call in advance and find out the facility’s policy so you may use that as a factor in making the decision about where you will choose to live.

Sure, from the facility’s standpoint, allowing pets may just be a competitive ploy to draw in a little additional business and has little to do with a deep love or devotion to all things furry. If that’s the case, so be it. I consider it a win-win situation.

Questions? Comments? Send Vicky e-mail at: pawprintcitytimes@sbcglobal.net or visit www.pawprintcitytimes.com.