Old Souls In Need Of Forever Families

Fluffy

Cider

Precious

Meika

Casper

Between the tough economy and the pet overpopulation crisis, animal shelters across the country are overflowing with dogs, cats, and critters of all shapes and sizes. While all homeless animals are worthy of adoption, senior pets are often the ones at greatest risk in shelters. November is Adopt-A-Senior-Pet Month, and I wanted to share some compelling reasons to open your heart and home to an old soul. The five dogs shown here - Fluffy, Cider, Precious, Meika, and Casper - are all available for adoption through Muttville Senior Dog Rescue. If their portraits aren't quite enough to convince you that you could benefit from having a senior canine in your life, here is OldDog Haven's list of ten reasons why adopting a mature pooch is a great idea:

Older dogs, especially those that come to us, settle in easily and are more than ready and willing to bond with you and your family.

What you see is what you get with older dogs. They’ve already grown into themselves in all ways.

An older dog probably won’t need a great deal of exercise, and will really appreciate quality time with you and a good nap. And of course, your socks and underwear will remain intact.

Older dogs generally like to watch the same programs on TV that you do, so you won’t have to learn to enjoy cartoons.

Many older dogs have already experienced rides in the car and walking on leash, so they’re instant companions and ready to continue those activities with you.

Older dogs have figured out what humans are all about and are willing and eager to add new information to their knowledge of human behavior. Old dogs can absolutely learn new tricks!

Older dogs are very grateful for the second chance they’ve been given and are very good at giving and receiving love.

There’s absolutely nothing like the smile you get from older dogs—especially dogs that haven’t felt like smiling in awhile, but now have reasons to smile because you love them.

Older dogs are looking for human companions who will value their wisdom and their slow pace. They have their very own special appeal.

When you adopt older dogs, you can erase any unpleasant past experiences that they’ve had by loving them and caring for them. It doesn’t get any better than that!