Communities Must Include Cats, Dogs, Birds and Fish
By Sandi Cain
The last place you might expect to find a virtual Noah’s Ark of animals is a senior living community. But that’s exactly what you’ll find when you walk into any Silverado Senior Living communities in California, Texas and Utah. The San Juan Capistrano, California-based company, which operates 16 communities for people with impaired memories, has contributed to more than the well being of its human residents since opening its doors 11 years ago. Its communities and branch offices also house a variety of pets that recently included 56 dogs, 45 cats, two miniature horses, two pot-bellied pigs, five rabbits, three guinea pigs and more than 400 fish and birds. And don’t forget Elliott, a red kangaroo that lives at Aspen Park in Salt Lake City.
While senior citizens nationwide increasingly worry about what will happen to their beloved pets if they have to move to an assisted care community, Silverado has launched a model that addresses pet retention as well as healthcare. Not only does Silverado allow residents to bring their pets, the company encourages it. And instead of mandating a maximum number of animals allowed, the company mandates a
minimum number of animals each location is required to have. Its pet care manual says there must be at least one dog and one cat for every 25 residents of the communities, one bird for every four residents and one aquarium for every 40 residents. Most of these pets are adopted from animal rescue organizations.
Spokesperson Julia Sutton said pets have been welcome from day one. “The founders wanted to create a place that they’d want to live or sent their parents,” she said. “They’re all animal lovers, so having animals in the communities was something they wanted.” Employees also are encouraged to bring their pets to work. Residents help care for the onsite animals and bond with employees’ pets, while other residents’ pets make new friends, too.
The animal residents bond with the human ones, sometimes giving them a sense of self-worth they’d long since lost. “At Silverado, we understand that the positive impact of animals can go deeper than the affection and unconditional love that brighten seniors’ lives,” said Loren Shook, president and CEO in a release. Helping to feed, groom and walk the animals gives them a renewed sense of importance.
Sutton said one resident turned down a popular field trip because it would have meant he couldn’t walk ‘his’ dog that afternoon. Another California resident found a bond with an onsite cat who adopted her and slept with her every night.
Shook said the presence of the pets has helped improve the health of residents with impaired memory. Since 1999, more than 1,400 Silverado residents have regained the ability to walk and more than 1,100 have learned to feed themselves again, thanks in part to the animals. And who wouldn’t be inspired if a horse or a pot-bellied pig visited your room?
Silverado Senior Living also has a home care and care management division, Silverado at Home, and offers hospice care through Silverado Hospice. California communities may be found in San Juan Capistrano, Costa Mesa/Newport Beach, Tustin, Calabasas, Azusa, Alhambra, Escondido, Encinitas and in San Francisco’s Belmont area. Texas communities are in Houston’s Cypresswood area, Kingwood, Irving, Plano, Turtle Creek, Sugar Land and The Woodlands. Aspen Park in Salt Lake City is the only Utah community.
For More Information:http://www.silveradosenior.comPhoto with permission from Silverado Senior Living