8 Reasons to Adopt a Senior Dog

In the past, i owned an old deaf dog adopted from shelter and in this video i will tell you what are the main advantages and benefits of adopting a senior dog.

It really depends on your preferences, but one of the most obvious advantages of adopting and owning an older dog is, that they are more chill, relaxed, less destructive and less hyper than puppies. Most people want to buy or adopt cute puppy, but puppies are whirlwinds of boundless energy. If something can be chewed, they will chew it. Older dogs typically already grew up from these habits and they are typically much more mellow and laid back.

Older dogs also require less time and supervision. Senior dogs are instant companions, most of them are ready for long walks in nature, but they do not demand it just as little puppies. Most of them also know what are their boundaries, so they do not need to be supervised 24/7 just like a little pup.
This goes hand in hand with potty training. Almost all the senior dogs are house broken and your carpet will definitely thank you for adopting an older dog rather than buying a little puppy.

Not only that senior dogs are housebroken, they are very often already trained, or at least they know the basic obedience commands. You should always ask in shelter about the dogs socialization and training and the shelter personnel should give you overview about your chosen dogs abilities. And even untrained senior dogs are still capable of learning all the needed commands relatively fast. You can definitely teach old dog new tricks.

Adopting already socialized older dog rather than young unsocialized pup is also a big benefit. Of course, make sure in the shelter, that the dog truly is well socialized, because there will be old dogs without socialization. But most older dogs will be socialized to at least some degree and when the UPS truck rolls up, an older adult dog may give it a sideways glance, rather than jump off the couch barking at the new intruder.

Many people who adopted older dogs, including myself, also say, that older adopted dogs form a special bond with their new owner. It almost feels like the dog is instantly attached to their new owner, they are grateful and they appreciate you for taking care of them. But of course, this might not always be the case.

You will also know what you will get in terms of size. Older dogs will not grow any bigger. If you would adopt a young pup or buy a mixed breed, you will never know how big it will really get. This is not the issue with older dogs. What you see is what you get.

And last, but not least benefit is, that you will save a life. Most people will prefer to adopt a young pup from the shelter, but senior dogs need a home too. Old, or even just adult dogs, are often passed over by potential adopters for puppies and younger dogs and they spend much more time in shelter up to 4x as long as a younger dog.

Of course, there are also some big disadvantages of adopting a senior dog. The biggest are health issues. Most senior dogs will eventually suffer from some kind of a health problem, it might be hip problems, digestive problems, eye problems.. It can be just anything and you must reckon with it.
They will also live for much shorter time. But they do deserve to spend their last days in loving family, rather than in a shelter.

Many senior dogs create extremely strong bond with their new adopting parents, which can lead to separation anxiety.

And if you are a very active person or family, the old dog might lack the energy and enthusiasm to live a happy life. They might also lack energy around kids, other dogs or other animals, so count with that as well.

Adopting an old dog is not an easy decision. Many people want to adopt old dog just to make a good deed. But it is much more than that, it is a big commitment for several years and you should really think it through. There are many people who adopted an adult dog, just to put it back to shelter after few months. But from my experience, adopting an old dog is a great decision!