Senior dog with dementia waited months for a home — until a familiar face stepped in
A senior dog with dementia spent nearly one year waiting for a home — until a familiar face stepped in.
The woman, who had been a foster parent to Ollie, “couldn’t stand the thought” of him going into another home and decided she had to keep him, a North Carolina shelter said.
“We’re so thrilled to share that she has officially adopted Ollie,” the Forsyth Humane Society wrote Sept. 24 on Facebook. “He will continue to get the love and stability he deserves in his forever home, where he’s already found his perfect match.”
The “heartwarming” news came after a journey that started in November 2023. At Ollie’s past home, he didn’t adjust well to his owners’ children. The dog then moved into their relatives’ home, but it didn’t have enough space, the shelter wrote on social media and told McClatchy News in an email.
Ollie landed at the humane society in Winston-Salem, where he started waiting for a home to “spend his last years and be pampered and loved,” adoption counselor Annette Grove told WXII. But early on, he struggled in the shelter environment.
“He became unable to focus on anything and was constantly restless, anxious, and unsettled, even after being with his foster and in environments with no apparent triggers or stimuli for his anxiety,” Malinda Massey, marketing manager for the shelter, wrote in the email. “He is now on medication that helps him to regulate those symptoms of dementia.”
Ollie spent much of his time in foster care, where his mom put him on a routine to help manage his dementia. He is described as a 12-year-old mixed-breed pup who “will do just about anything for a treat.”
“Though Ollie was initially available for adoption, his foster realized after the first meet and greet with an interested couple that she couldn’t stand the thought of letting him go,” the shelter wrote. “If they passed on adopting Ollie, she wouldn’t let the opportunity slip through her fingers again.”
Then, after six months of caring for Ollie, the shelter shared the good news that the woman adopted the “calm and curious” dog.
“We were all thrilled to see Ollie go home with someone who has cared for him so wonderfully over the last 6 months,” Massey wrote. “We couldn’t have asked for a better fit for his forever home, and we know he’s truly in the best hands.”
This story was originally published September 27, 2024 at 8:52 AM with the headline "Senior dog with dementia waited months for a home — until a familiar face stepped in."
