Meet the volunteers caring for senior citizens’ dogs

Imagine not being able to give your beloved pet what it needs: not being able to walk him as much as you would like, or pick him up to give him a bath. This is the reality a lot of pet owners face as they get older. Luckily a dedicated group of volunteers are happy to help.

By Mark Rigby

George, Billy and Clare

In the back room of his single-level block home, George Greatorex watches cricket with his dog Billy lying on the tiled floor beside him.

George, 86, has lived alone since his wife passed away earlier this year. In his case, a dog truly is a man’s best friend.

“He sticks to me like a shadow,” he said.

“He won’t go to bed without me. If I try and stay up and watch sports he’ll round me up like a sheep and get me off to bed.

“Because he likes to be in bed at 9.00 pm, poor old dad has to be in bed at 9.00 pm too.”

George and his late wife Pam are all Billy has known since they adopted him as a puppy in 2010.

And, for four years George diligently walked him every afternoon.

Two years ago, though, he developed a hernia that left him incapacitated while he waited more than eight months to receive treatment.

Unable to walk Billy, he called on the services of Animal Care for Seniors at Home (ACSAH) — a group of volunteers who walk, wash and care for senior citizens’ pets in their own homes.

Clare Drewery has been walking Billy nearly every day since.

“This gives them [seniors] the opportunity to keep their dogs longer, and keep their dogs healthier,” Clare said.

“And they’re lovely to chat to — I mean, I’m old, but they’re older and it’s just nice to give them a bit of company.

“Poor old George lost his wife about two months ago so he really enjoys a chat and well … it’s part of it really.”

Clare has become such a part of the pair’s daily routine that, even though George is now able to walk Billy again, she remains a presence in their lives.

“[Billy] is a lucky boy at the moment; he’s getting two walks a day, although my walks would be slower than what Clare does,” George said.

“He thinks Clare is just the cat’s pyjamas.”

For Clare, who only works a few hours each morning, her daily walk with Billy provides more than light exercise.

“He [Billy] gets the chance to have a nice long walk, where his father’s not really able to give him a long walk, and he loves me,” she laughed.

“He’s my new friend and I’m his new friend — well, [we’re] old friends now.”

Beryl, Charlie and Annabelle

As ACSAH volunteer Annabelle Symes approaches Beryl Watson’s front door she calls out to signal her arrival to Beryl’s beloved canine, a Maltese-cross named Charlie.

Within seconds, Charlie’s paws rattle against the screen door, the clatter of claws and steel a backdrop to the yelps of an excited dog.

Charlie has been a part of Beryl’s life since her husband passed away nearly 10 years ago.

“I had to have something to get me up in the morning and do things,” Beryl said.

“He’s not just a dog, he’s my little mate. He loves me, follows me everywhere, sleeps with me on the other end of the bed, and he’s just everything to me.”

At 75, Beryl is the first to admit she has struggled to keep up with Charlie’s needs in recent times.

“I was thinking along the lines that I might have to surrender him because I literally couldn’t do what I wanted to do with him,” she said.

“It was heartbreaking just thinking about it.”

Annabelle has now been walking Charlie for about six months and the bond between the two grows with each journey through the suburbs.

“When I first took Charlie out, we’d get to a certain section of the walk and he’d just stand still,” Annabelle said.

“Then I realised that Charlie prefers to walk in the gutter, rather than on the grass.”

As with Charlie, Annabelle’s relationship with Beryl has grown over time.

“When you’re visiting once or twice a week, you just become friends and then you find out what you’ve got in common,” Annabelle said.

“Beryl is an extremely good gardener, I’m interested in gardening … I love travel, she loves travel. Sometimes we’ll sit there over a cup of tea and discuss where we’ve been and where we’d like to go.

“You build up a friendship with people you never would have met any other way.”

At the end of his half-hour walk Charlie pads back through Beryl’s front door, panting and tired but visibly happy to have exerted some energy.

And, as an old friend returns home with a newfound one, Beryl too beams with delight.

“I’m happy because he’s happy,” Beryl said.

“All dogs enjoy a walk but I just found I couldn’t do it.

“[Annabelle] is just a lovely person. She’s wonderful, and to come and do what she does in my home is just a blessing.”

Rae, Barney and Graham

A little more than two years ago Rae Bennett woke up to find someone had been in her yard through the night.

Soon after she recruited a Shar-Pei-cross named Barney.

“He’s very much my friend, he’s my entertainment, but also he’s my security as well,” Rae said.

At 59, Rae is hardly a senior citizen but Barney’s size and exuberance make him difficult for her handle.

“I have some trouble with my hips and my back so walking him too far gives me a lot of back-ache,” Rae said.

“[ACSAH] came in quite happily to take him on a couple of long walks a week, where I probably couldn’t manage it.”

Graham Wilson is one of three ACSAH volunteers who spends time with Barney; and Barney is just one of seven dogs Graham walks each week.

“I particularly like dogs and I like making sure dogs get walked,” Graham said.

“The owners get the satisfaction that their dog’s being cared for, being walked, getting their exercise and getting their mind challenged sometimes.

“But the real benefit of it is the owners get to keep their dogs whereas if they couldn’t get them exercised and washed, they might have to give them up.”

For Rae, Barney’s long walks mean he is a happier and healthier dog, and therefore better at keeping her safe at home.

“He’s more content at home, he’s not flighty and he’s quite happy to just laze about the house after he’s had his walk,” she said.

“It definitely makes living at home with him better because he’s not a small dog.”

Originally published at www.abc.net.au on December 12, 2016.