Support by Midland County Senior Services helping Midland County residents aged 60 plus remain independent in their homes and stay socially engaged.

Senior Services provides a variety of services, supports and programs, including meals, fitness classes, educational programs and more.

Seasons Adult day services and volunteer opportunities are also available.

More information is at senior services.

Midland dot org.

That's Senior services.

Midland dot org.

Embrace your age with senior services.

Hi, I'm Jessie Fletcher.

I'm the executive director with the Humane Society of the county, So we know the importance of having an animal get adopted out of a shelter.

It's good for their mental health.

It's good for their physical being.

it's also really great for that home to have that animal.

So what that does is it showcases the importance of, having a companion by your side, having a dog curled up on your couch, having a cat, you know, playing with a toy on the on the floor.

It's really good for the human to see that, to feel that, study show the importance of that animal.

Human bond with, seniors over 50.

It helps out with stress, anxiety, depression, PTSD.

It also helps with having a companion, a smaller companion with, seniors who maybe are dealing with dementia or Alzheimer's.

It helps them kind of bring back some of their childhood or bring back some of the older memories.

there are a few things to consider when considering if you want to adopt a pet or not.

When you come into the animal shelter, at the Humane Society, what we're going to do is we're going to talk to you about your household.

We're going to ask you some bedding questions.

We're going to ask you what your household is like, how often you're home, how often you travel.

We're going to go through those questions to see what's a good fit for you.

Another thing to consider when thinking of adopting an animal is the size of the animal.

Dogs pull on leashes sometimes, so having a big dog might not be something that you want to handle at that time.

So having a smaller dog or a smaller breed might be a more suited fit for you.

And then maybe a dog may not be the fit at all.

Maybe it's a cat.

Maybe it's a small animal.

At that point.

Very sweet.

Very sweet.

You're very good girl.

My dog that you see today is Gracie.

And I got her here from the shelter about three months ago.

She was surrendered as a stray, and I took her home to foster her.

Because the little dogs knew better without the noises from all the big ones.

They do better in a home.

And, I got her home and realized she was a great little dog.

She was housebroken and crate trained from somebody else.

And, so I kept her.

it gets me up in the morning and gets me out walking.

She gives me lots of cuddles and love and so, it's nice to have somebody that likes me all the time, no matter what I do.

She keeps me socialized with other people because people see her and they go, oh, where'd you get your dog?

And say, well, animal shelter.

Oh, really?

Yeah.

So we have all sorts of dogs that come through here, so you never know.

You know, what might be available.

And I just love working here because I like being around dogs and cats.

We also I would advise someone who's considering getting an animal to consider their lifestyle.

Are they one that wants to be outside with the dogs, or are they someone who will travel more and want to have a cat?

Someone can come in and take care care of while they're gone.

Find out what how much you want to commit on time and, cost is a factor sometimes.

As far as grooming, feeding that bills, you have to consider all that.

And then I would suggest that you go and meet some of the prospective animals and see if you connect with them, if you like them.

Because it's very important that you like each other.

It's important to pick an animal.

Not because of their appearance, but because of their personality.

And by spending, you know, a while, half an hour or so, at least, with an animal here at the shelter that you're considering adopting.

You can kind of get a feel on their personality and whether you will really connect in your home long term, because it is a long term commitment.

I think having a pet when you're over 50 is important because it, it helps keep you connected.

The pets will give you unconditional love.

You have to take care of them.

There's there's a good feeling when you give to someone or something when you take care of an animal.

That's always a positive thing.

didn't I know what, I know what I Another need we have at the Humane Society is volunteers is we take volunteers as young as 16 all the way up into seniors.

Some of the areas that we're looking for volunteer needs is we need, you know, cat cutlers and cat cage cleanings.

We need, dog enrichment toys to be made.

We need dog walkers.

And maybe you don't want to handle the animals themselves.

We also have housekeeping items.

We have laundry, we have dishes.

We have yard work.

And maybe that might not be what you want to do either.

We also have offsite events.

We always need people to put on different donation drives.

We always have something for someone to volunteer their time.

No matter the age.

We'll be this.

Thank you, Jerry and Jessie.

And thank you, Max.

We're proud to have been part of your pack for the past ten years.

If you already have a pet or pets, Jessie encourages you to develop a succession plan in case someday you're not able to care for them.

Discuss with your family and friends where your pets will go and how their care will be supported.

If you're interested in adopting a pet or volunteering, contact your local humane society or animal shelter.

Just search for them online and in your community.