Why Senior and Special Needs Dogs Deserve a Second Chance—and a Spot on Your Couch

The post Why Senior and Special Needs Dogs Deserve a Second Chance—and a Spot on Your Couch appeared first on A-Z Animals.

Thinking about adding a new furry friend to your family? There are millions of dogs available to be adopted (3.1 million enter U.S. animal shelters every year), and one of them could make a great companion. But before you go looking for a puppy, consider adopting or fostering a senior or special needs dog instead. These unique animals bring a lot to the table, and they deserve a peaceful and loving home in which to enjoy their final days.

Only 25% of senior dogs are adopted, compared to 60% of younger dogs and puppies, according to the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA). But older dogs have a lot to be desired. Many times, they’ve outgrown annoying puppy habits like teething and having accidents; they often have some basic training under their belt, and they are more likely to be able to settle into a new home quicker and easier.

Some animal rescues focus on helping dogs with special needs and/or advanced age to find loving homes outside of shelters. Check out three of these amazing places below.

LoveyLoaves Special Needs Rescue & Sanctuary

Dogs with special needs can find their forever home at LoveyLoaves Special Needs Rescue & Sanctuary, based in Florida. This organization is a small-breed special needs dog rescue with no age limit.

“We focus on blind, deaf, carted (wheelchair or paralyzed), amputees, and medically complex cases,” Cheri Wells, founder and executive chairman of LoveyLoaves, says. “These are the first dogs to be surrendered to shelters or left to fend for themselves.”

Special needs dogs are also the first to be euthanized in shelters, according to Wells, and this just doesn’t sit right with her. “They deserve to be loved, cared for, and cherished just as our other pets,” she says.

Wells runs LoveyLoaves with her husband, Ward Wells, who keeps the technical side of things running, while she manages the daily tasks of the rescue, helps with transport, hosts community outreach, and advocates for responsible pet guardianship. At home, they share their lives with pets Ollie, Winslow, Smudge, Mary, Colby, and Sassy.

The dogs at LoveyLoaves — or the “lil’ loveys” as Wells calls them — start by staying with the organization at their Lil’ Lovey House. “This gives me time to assess the dog, have their initial vetting completed, and understand their exact needs,” she explains. “Then we can place the lil’ lovey with an appropriate family specifically trained to care for their needs.”

To become a foster family, you’ll fill out an application, have a phone interview, do a home visit, and provide personal and veterinary references to be considered. “A lot of times, the fosters already have experience in a certain area of care, and that is their driving force for fostering with us,” Wells says. “If they do not already have experience, I am willing to train the right family.”

Once a dog is placed in the foster family, LoveyLoaves works with the family to help in any way. They provide medical care, medications, food, and other necessary supplies for the dog. “We stay in close contact with our foster families, and if they need anything, all they do is text me personally,” Wells shares. Fostering a dog truly makes you part of the family here!

“These lil’ loveys deserve better than what humanity has done for them,” Wells says. “Are they different? Yes, but they also deserve to be loved and cherished.”

Give back by fostering a pet, adopting a dog, donating money, giving through their Amazon wish list, or by sharing LoveyLoaves’ social media posts to spread awareness. Additionally, the Arts for Carts: Fall Ball 2025 fundraising event is planned for October 4, 2025, at Rosen Shingle Creek Hotel in Orlando, Florida.

Old Dog Haven

Everyone wants puppies, but senior dogs need loving homes as well. That’s why Old Dog Haven in Washington is focused on helping dogs of a more advanced age. This nonprofit group works with foster families to provide homes for senior dogs, aged 8 and older, that nobody else wants to adopt. They care for them in permanent foster homes, providing all needed veterinary care. Another way they help is by assisting rescues, shelters, and owners in finding new homes for the senior dogs in their care. Finally, these organization works to educate the public on the value of senior dogs and how they can benefit your family.

Their mission statement is simple: “Old Dog Haven is committed to the belief that all senior dogs should live peacefully in their final years as members of a caring family.”  

Whether an older dog needs a new home after an owner’s death or a change in circumstances, or they have been living in shelters for too long, Old Dog Haven wants to give these dogs a loving end to their lives.

Since Dec. 2016, Old Dog Haven has had more than 300 dogs in their care at one time. If you are interested in becoming a foster family, you can fill out a form online. Your dog may have special needs with medical conditions, emotional issues, and age, and the organization will work with the foster family and veterinarians to ensure the dog is well taken care of. In this vein, all medical expenses are paid for.  

After the application, you will have a phone interview and a home visit. Because these dogs require a lot of care, you may not be chosen to foster if you have children under the age of 5, if you work outside the home full-time, if you live more than 30 minutes from an emergency animal clinic, if you travel frequently, or for other reasons. You can also help by donating to Old Dog Haven to help provide the veterinary care these senior dogs need, sponsoring a final refuge dog, donating your vehicle, and/or attending the Old Dog Haven Pups on Parade fundraising event and silent auction on July 12, 2025.

Blind Dog Rescue Alliance

The Blind Dog Rescue Alliance (BDRA) in Pennsylvania focuses on helping blind and visually impaired dogs of any breed who may have been abused, neglected, abandoned, or surrendered by their owners. The organization networks with shelters to help provide medical care, foster dogs, and adopt dogs for forever families.

Jennifer Quiggle, who has fostered for BDRA for 9 years and is on several teams and on the board, says that the organization helps foster and find forever homes for any dog with vision issues and/or diseases of their eyes, including cataracts.

Word needs to be spread that blind dogs are just as capable, loving, playful, and therapeutic as any other, non-disabled dog.

Jennifer Quiggle, Foster mom and board member, Blind Dog Rescue Alliance

“Our motto is ‘blind dogs see with their hearts,’” Quiggle says. “We love helping dogs with eye issues and blindness because they have as much to offer to a human companion as a non-disabled dog, and we love promoting that concept to others.”

“Just because a dog is disabled doesn’t mean it’s any different in any other way than other dogs,” she adds. “They have just as much to offer.”

BDRA is a foster-based rescue, helping dogs find foster placements throughout the United States and Canada. The organization sends out emails to potential foster homes with descriptions of dogs needing to be rescued from shelters and owners, and then they can apply to be on the foster team. Sometimes, foster homes are denied if the dog’s location is too far away, and the dog cannot be safely transported.

Quiggle explains, “We are extremely passionate about what we do and have a very thorough adoption process to make sure, to the best of our ability, that each of our fosters is placed into the best home for them and that the dog is also the best fit for the adoptive families.”

When the foster offer is accepted, the dogs are taken into the foster home that is the best fit for them. They also have dogs available for adoption. The BDRA makes sure that dogs are thoroughly vetted, any treatments or surgeries started and/or completed, personalities are assessed, and foster families become very familiar with their foster dogs so an accurate adoption write-up can be written for potential adopters.

“Word needs to be spread that blind dogs are just as capable, loving, playful, and therapeutic as any other, non-disabled dog,” Quiggle adds.

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