For Kathryn LaRoche, it has been difficult living alone during the pandemic, so, when her cat who was 20-years-old passed away, she opened her home and heart to another older animal. In an interview she says: “It was a really heartbreaking experience, but made me realize how great senior pets can be.”
She came across Sonny, a 16-year-old dog who was found as a stray on the streets of Indianapolis, while she was browsing the Indy Humane website. Even though he was micro-chipped, attempts taken to find and contact his original owners had failed. The woman fell in love with this gray faced old soul, and she knew that with his age, it would be difficult for him to find another home, hence, her decision to go meet him at the shelter. LaRoche says: “I spent the days before the meeting making sure I had everything ready for him at home, so that if he did come home with me he would have beds and toys.”
On the allotted date, LaRoche went into the shelter, asking to meet their oldest resident, and the volunteers brought Sonny outside. Since the second the woman saw the old dog, she knew that his forever home was with her. The woman also had this to say regarding the adoption: “They said I could spend about 30 minutes with him to make a decision, but I went in to fill out the paperwork after five. I could tell he was a bit nervous meeting new people, but he was just such a happy, easy- going old guy that I knew he’d be perfect for me.”
On the way home from the shelter, Sonny couldn’t stop smiling, and once they got home, the doggo wanted to be as close as possible to his new mom.
LaRoche also says: “He did make it very clear from the first night that he wanted to sleep in the bed with me under the covers. So although I hadn’t originally planned on him being a bed dog, he is one now!” although Sonny is a laid-back senior, according to LaRoche, his fun-loving side is starting to come out. After some time being in his own cocoon, Sonny has started playing with his new toys. Anytime LaRoche takes out his winter jacket and Sonny sees it, he gets super excited super excited to go out for a walk.
He also doesn’t forget to show his mom his appreciation of her. In her interview, she says: “It’s only been a few days, but I can tell he’s already starting to trust me more and he has become super cuddly. He always wants to be in the same room as me.”
As LaRoche and Sonny have each other, things have brightened up and turned out much better than the woman had expected and imagined, and finally she says: “He honestly seems like a dream dog and I can’t believe I got to bring him home. He still has so much love to give and I feel really lucky that I get to spoil him for the rest of his days.”
