Welcome back to another heartwarming episode of "Talk of the County." Today, we're diving into an initiative that's not just uplifting but life-changing for many in our community.

Pet Foster Advocates: "When somebody takes a dog home and they spend the weekend with them or even a week or so and for whatever reason they just aren't able to have them full time, they advocate for that dog. They help us find a home for that dog."— Kaye Persinger

From the Franklin County Animal Care and Control, Kenneth Wilson is joined by Deputy County Administrator Joy Bivens, Director Chanda Wingo from the Franklin County Office on Aging, and Kaye Persinger, Director at Franklin County Animal Care and Control to discuss a new program — Mission Pawsible.

The Unexpected Perks of Pet Ownership: "Research shows that there are both physical benefits, because when you own a pet, you're on a schedule, whether it be walking or ensuring that they have their needs met." — Chanda Wingo

This incredible initiative pairs shelter dogs with older residents to help combat loneliness and isolation. From the physical and emotional benefits of pet ownership to supportive community resources, this episode covers it all.

Mission Pawsible is making a big difference in Franklin County.

Memorable Moments

00:00 Mission Pawsible aims to combat seniors' isolation.

06:40 Consider mobility and training for handling puppies.

08:33 Dog leads are available, good for first dates.

11:08 Advocates help find homes for shelter dogs.

14:19 Plan for pet care in your absence.

19:09 Supporting seniors in pet care planning is important.

23:12 Free clinics, updated information, reunification efforts available.

Top Takeaways

Mission Pawsible was inspired by real experiences during the pandemic, where seniors reported benefits from pet adoption to alleviate social isolation.

Pet ownership offers physical benefits such as maintaining a schedule for walks, which also promotes cognitive health through routine tasks.

Seniors can participate in various social events and groups with their pets, including activities at metro parks, dog parks, and trails.

Resources like Life Care Alliance provide food for both seniors and their pets, reducing the burden on seniors struggling with food insecurity.

The animal shelter offers different options for seniors unsure about committing to a pet, including fostering and community dog-walking programs.

Visits from shelter dogs to assisted living facilities help alleviate stress and depression among residents, showing the profound emotional benefits of pet interaction.

The Franklin County Animal Shelter offers numerous resources like microchipping, pet food pantries, and low-cost spay/neuter clinics to support pet owners.

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Copyright 2024 Franklin County Board of Commissioners

Good afternoon. This is Talk of the County, listeners. I'm your host, Kenneth Wilson. And today, I'm broadcasting live from the Franklin County Dog Shelter. We're joined today by Deputy County Administrator Joy Bivens, Director Chanda Wingo of the from the Franklin County Office on Aging, and Kaye Persinger from the Franklin County Dog Shelter and Adoption Center to discuss an exciting new initiative, Mission Pawsible. This heartwarming program pairs our older residents, our seniors, with shelter dogs to help combat feelings of isolation and loneliness. Directors, why don't you tell us a little bit more about this program?

Thank you, administrator Wilson. Shawn Domingo. Mission Pawsible was birthed from, lived experiences. During the pandemic, there were many seniors who were suffering from some social isolation and shared their stories with us around pet adoption to combat social isolation. And so, one of the common things that we know with our seniors that live in Franklin County around the world is that some of the things that they could benefit from, there's a stigma or fear associated with owning a dog. And so mission Pawsible was coined to, put out a message to let our seniors know that owning pet ownership or social connectedness is Pawsible through Pawsible. Yes. And that's how we that's how we got here.

You know, having having pets, can be a significant responsibility. Because look at her. Look at that little mama right there. She gets, like, just, you know, just cuttable, trying to trying to, you know it's like, you know, being a parent again and in a lot of respects. So can you share the pros and cons of older adults having a parent?

Absolutely. There are a number of pros. Research shows that there are both physical benefits, because when you own a pet, you're on a schedule, whether it be walking or ensuring that they have their needs met. For example, I I like to tell the story around my own mother. I have a teenager who just had to have a dog, promise to do all the things with the dog, and that didn't happen. And earlier this year, my mother, was forced into early retirement. She didn't wanna retire. She wanted something to do.

And so by nature, she began to care for this dog. And so I hear her in the morning, 6 o'clock in the morning, she's staring

the dog. Uh-oh. You see the unpredictability.

She's she communicates with the dog. The dog spends time with her. She takes the dog for walks. They're on a schedule. And so that also contributes to cognitive health. You know, remembering a schedule, staying on a schedule, remember feeding, remember all of the appointments and all of the times that you have to disperse, lift experience, I'm seeing the benefit of having a pet in home with an older adult.

Are there social events or groups for seniors and their pets to participate in together?

Yes. So our metro parks, have, a a wealth of events that they host. There are get doggy parks as well. There are trails that are pet friendly. I would recommend that you go to the Metroparks website, metro I think it's metroparks.net, to find their calendar of events. There are also Facebook groups that, pet owners can share. We also have some phenomenal programming, out of our own dog shelter that I will not still case, under, but they have a a a phenomenal lineup of events as well.

Yeah. They should, like, have a, you know, treats and friends.

Hang out

and the dogs get treats and then the sinkers can can kinda talk with each other and share their experiences with their pets while the dogs get treats and toys. All dogs like toys. Look. They like toys. I know they like toys. What advice does the office, offer the seniors for the long term care of their pets? You know, connecting with Meals on Wheels, for example, to ensure that the pets have the food as well. Yeah. Talking about the the the veterinary responsibilities and all such things.

Mhmm.

So in Franklin County, you know, we are experiencing a lot of things and one of those things is food insecurity. And what we've learned in dealing with older adults is that, you know, the companionship is is what they have and what they thrive off of. And oftentimes, older adults who are struggling with, those types of insecurities will not feed themselves, but they'll feed their pets first. And so Life Care Alliance is one of our partners that does offer, resources for our adults, so that they can maintain their relationship with their furry friends, but also provide food for both themselves as well as their pets so that they don't go hungry and that their pet doesn't go hungry, and they can maintain that healthy relationship.

Patience. Patience. That's the key. Good parents. Folks, if you got some patience and you're a good teacher, pets are pay pets are great. One thing I will say about pets, they are extremely loyal. Very. They are extremely loyal.

You can't get better companionship. And when you talk about seniors and feelings of isolation, dog dogs especially just have that sense

Yeah.

When you're not feeling well, that you they you could just see in their eyes as you walk in and the dog's like, you're not need to see about grandma. She's been feeling well today. You need to check get out of it. Not my fault. You just send their eyes and the expression. So, Director Persinger, can you talk about what safety concerns older adults need to take into account, when they're considering having a pet? Yeah. Like breeds of dogs and all those Right.

I think it's more about your mobility, what you're comfortable with handling. You know, puppies are great, but they need some leash training. They can still pull. They can get in between your feet and your legs while you're doing things and and possibly cause an accidental fall, but we deal with things like that. We have kennels that we loan out or we give out if you need, and we can help you crate train these dogs. We can also help you with dog walking. And if you haven't had a pet in a really long time and you do want this unconditional love and you're really unsure about it, there's so many things you can do. You can come out to the shelter and just volunteer or just walk walk a dog.

Mhmm. You can come out and spend a little time with them in a room if you're not sure about walking. And we have more than enough to choose from. Breeds and sizes and ages, we have pretty much all of it. And then if you feel like you're comfortable taking it home, you can foster. Take it home for a while and see is this gonna be a good fit. And while you're fostering, we provide everything for the dog. We provide all the medical, the food.

We have training free here at the shelter, but we also have training online. So if you can't get here, you're more than welcome to use that resource and send us questions or anything. So we do everything in our power to make sure that it's gonna be a great fit.

Okay. That leads me to my next question. Can you tell listeners a little bit about the shelters community dog walking program and how can get involved. It is

a wonderful program. Basically, what we do on Sundays, when the spring arrives as of now, is you just come out to the shelter and all you wanna

do is walk a dog.

You really don't shelter and all you wanna do is walk a dog. You really don't have the capacity to take one home for whatever reason at this time. It helps the dogs. It helps, the community. It certainly helps the employees here and our volunteers. They'll get the dog out for you. Take them out to the yard. You just walk them.

And then we also have different leads and stuff out there. So if the dog becomes too much, you can just hook it to the fence and let us know, and we'll go out and get the dog. But we have found it's actually turned into a good, opportunity for first dates. It's it's turned into a great opportunity for an an adult to bring their elderly parent to see. Because a parent may want 1 in the and usually it's their children that are more concerned than they are, but you will never find unconditional love like you do in a pet.

It might be a good, thing for older adults to do with their grandchildren. Yeah. Absolutely. Saturday. Get some exercise and come out and spend some times with our dogs.

And we give you some treats out there. We get the dog you know, a lot of times they come through our shelter and they say, oh, you have these big dogs and they're jumping all over and they're anxious. They don't act like that out of the camera or we wouldn't have them up for adoption. They're just anxious to get out. They see you. They want out. Yeah. So we do have staff that'll get them out of the shelter, out of the kennel for you, and put them back in.

Because that's really the most whoops. Woah. Dangerous time. Look. He's like that's the most dangerous time is getting them in and out. Because they get so excited about going out. So we do have staff that'll do that for you. But if you decide to foster or take them home, trust me, they act a lot different once they're in the home.

You gotta go. You see, I I I I gotta I I gotta move. We gotta move. We was talking about the walker But what we want to talk to the, county listeners to know is, you know, especially if if they're older adult and you're interested in a in a Pawsible program, you can kind of date a cute dog. You can come and introduce yourself to a cute dog. Mhmm. And you can, foster it. Mhmm.

Or one of the programs I love we offer is the sleepover program.

Yes.

Holiday sleepover. We I know we have a lot of adoptions where people just get to, you know, kinda get to introduce themselves, sit it all, you know, and then then they, you know, find out whether there's a batch. Because you know with dogs, dogs and people have to connect, you know.

Right. Yeah.

Right. Be harmony. So Right. Don't tell, like, online dating. Right. You know, maybe we need to do a online dating, promotion with it.

Like a yeah.

Like a speed?

Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Speak on behalf of the dog. Let the dog connect online and create a website for online dog bait. You know, some for mom trying to get dogs homes, you know.

And they're great advocates. When somebody takes a dog home and they spend the weekend with them or even a week or so and for whatever reason they just aren't able to have them full time, they advocate for that dog. They help us find a home for that dog. Believe it or not as big as we are and as much as we try to be out there in a public, there's still a lot of people who don't know we exist or what we have. So they still go and say this is a great dog and they are such an advocate and they tell us things we don't know about the dog. Does it gonna get along with your cat if you have a cat? Mhmm. How's it act around children? Is it already crate trained? Has it been potty trained? And they can tell us those things that we don't know here at the shelter.

Yeah. You know, as county administrator, we have so many different breeds and types of dogs, which is like Baskin Robbins. They just got me in the 30 one 200 and plus flavors of dogs, and every dog got an individual personality. They do. Yeah. They can, you know, see if you can, you know, see how it all how it all matches. And it it can be it can be life changing because he does, I mean, they just they just bond. Like I said, you know, they they have personalities, they they do things, and then, you know, the senior connects with them and they, you know, eventually listen.

Yes.

Most times they will listen because seniors have a special way of of making sure that happened too.

But one of our things and one of our foster programs that we really could use seniors a lot into is if they aren't too sure about walking a dog, say they have to use a walker at home or something, and they're just not sure about it, we have a lot of neonatals that come in here. People, well, the mother has died or they don't wanna take care of them or they find them as strays, and they're still bottle feeders. So obviously you don't walk those, but we provide the formula, we provide the bottles, we provide all of the updates for, the doctor visits, the veterinary visits. The hardest part is they're like babies. They need that every 4 hours. So it's really hard for staff and people to do that if they work. Absolutely. Because they're getting up with a a little guy or a little girl.

Yeah. And they're bottle feeding and encouraging them to Absolutely. Potty. Yeah. But once they're old enough to be spayed and neutered Mhmm. Then we get them back in here and we get them adopted. And the same thing with some of our heartworm dogs that are being treated. They're older dogs, but they are not to be walked.

They have to be completely kept in that crate, until the time passes where they've passed all those heartworms. And it can be really difficult for people. They feel sorry for the dog. They wanna take it out and run it, but that is not healthy. So people that are more homebound would really look for those people that may be interested in the program. The other thing is we are the only dog shelter in, I think, the nation, but I do know in the state of Ohio that runs 247. So if you have a problem in the middle of the night with the dog, for whatever reason you're fearful of it or you've got some family emergency, we will come out and get the dog and bring the dog back. 24 hours? 24 hours, 7 days a week.

70 left? Yep. That's for Franklin County Animal Shelter. Talk of the County listeners. Every resident, every day, every dog, every day. That's what we are all about. What steps should an older adult take to create a care plan for their pets, should something happen

to them? Just as you would yourself, you know, what, do you have somebody in line that'd be willing to care of the pet should you end up in the hospital for a couple of weeks or, you know, just not be available to the dog for any length of time? Or just aftercare because you've, you know, gone on. Somebody that's aware they're gonna be taking care of the pet. Somebody that may be familiar with the pet and give some instructions. And if you just have absolutely nobody, that's okay too. You know, we will gladly take the dog and we will gladly try and rehome that dog. The best way for us to rehome is to have a little diary, you know, about your dog somewhere telling us about the dog. What is the favorite things the dogs likes and doesn't? Because the dog will be depressed for a while. So it's really important for us to continue with that enrichment with the dogs.

Yeah. This program is gonna be a beautiful collaboration between all of its own agent and the and the Franklin County Animal Shelter. How do you all plan to collect feedback from seniors that have adopted dolls so that we can improve the program over time?

That's a good question. I think, one of the things that we do in The Franklin County Office on Aging on a regular basis is we do survey our clients, to understand, you know, what are we doing well? What could we do better? And if, you know, this is a hit, we're we're hoping that you all encourage your older or your favorite senior to come out, and and join this program. We can add that in, to collect that feedback. Because we think that this is, gonna be very, very, instrumental in combating, social isolation. There is a phenomenon now, with our seniors which have been coined as senior orphans where they have nobody. Right. They don't have family members or they didn't have children or most of their family has passed away. And this is an excellent way, for our seniors to, find another way to connect, without having to always leave their house.

Because we also know as after post COVID, there's a lot of concerns about reentering a new normal and, you know, wanting to not necessarily go out and and into this new world. Because a lot of places that our seniors used to go to have closed. And so, that is an excellent, way that we can, you know, understand how this, impacts the lives of our seniors and and do better, going forward with programming and connectivity with agencies such as the dog shelter.

You know, we visit assisted living homes quite often. Mhmm. And we do plan visits where we'll take some dogs out, puppies out. And it's interesting now that we've been going to some of them so often that the caretakers will come to us saying so and so has been very depressed lately. When you go see them first and as soon as we put that dog in their lap, it's like this you can see the stress just melt away from that person. They're so happy that this dog is there to give them unconditional love even though they they don't even know them. They're just happy to have that bonding and that even if it's just for a short period of time. So even health care providers are realizing the benefits of it.

That's awesome.

You know, Franklin County is a very caring community when we talk about raising, you know, children. We we have this saying it takes a village. What or what other organizations are there that can assist with the care of a pet?

There are a ton of low cost spay and neuter clinics out there. However, if you ever get one from us it will already come spayed and neutered, microchipped licensed, and have all the medical needs taken care of. But there are a ton of low costs that we can provide. There are way too many for me to mention right now, but we also have them on our website. County also has we've got a dog food pet pantry. And we get so many donations of blankets, clothes, dog food, treats, and we pass those on to the public and there's no questions asked. If you say you need it we believe you and we want you to have it. So and it's ran strictly through donations.

It's a wonderful program.

Okay, listeners. Use your favorite search engine and put in Franklin County Animal Shelter and resources, and we'll we'll help you out. We'll help connect you, because what we want you to do is have a support around you to be able to keep your pet. Because the the worst thing in the is for a pet to be separated, from a family or individual because they have a lack of resources and that they need a little extra help. So, anything we can do to try to keep you connected with your pet, with your what you hope to be your lifetime friend, we wanna do that. This is a 2 part question for both, the office on agent and the animal shelter. First part of this question is for, you Director Domingo. When does it become unsafe for an older adult adult to have a pet?

I think Kaye kinda touched on it earlier, when a pet, needs can't be met because your health is declining or, you're no longer able to keep up with their maintenance. But also if your own health is declining and you're not able to get around as much, and the dog is probably, too, rambunctious or just in the way, I would recommend that you give Kaye a call or give us a call so we can identify some resources. But knowing yourself, and knowing what your capabilities are, I would always I always like to encourage families that support seniors to also keep an eye on it, and notice and pay attention because we usually see it before our our family members are willing to admit it. But, you know, also make sure that your family knows what your your wishes are. You know, as our older adults tend to decline, sometimes Alzheimer's creeps in or dementia or, you know, fatalities. You know, what are your wishes for the care of your dog should your health decline and your family identifies? There's nothing wrong with, you know, someone else in the family taking that dog in. But what are those wishes in that older dog that they'd like to see have happen with their pet?

And and, director, how does a family had a conversation when they witness a situation where the the pen has literally taken over? Yeah.

Those are difficult. They're very very difficult conversations because it's just like a child. That's their child. That's their family. I think it has to be done very delicately. And sometimes how I approach things that are difficult is I ask more questions than I give solutions and let them come up with their own solution. Such as, once did you remember to give them their flea and tick? Or looks like you have a bruise there. Or I haven't seen the leash laying around.

And you you just bring them to some self awareness, and then it kind of as time goes by, it makes that conversation a little easier. And instead of saying we're taking this dog from you forever, we're gonna take him home for a weekend. Just let you have some space. It just gets him a little more used to the idea instead of saying, look. It's it's obvious you cannot take care

of this dog. I don't

want you getting hurt so I'm taking the dog. I understand that from carrying, you know, children, but it should be handled a lot more delicate than that. Yeah. It's very important for seniors to maintain their independence, and that is one way,

of maintaining independence. Having those caring conversations, allowing them to come up with their own, and introducing ideas that they haven't considered is is remarkable.

That little lady has been so good with deputy county administrator Joy Davis. She she looking like, I need a home. I need a blanket. Mhmm. Somebody come get me. And, I wanna live with you. That's what she looking like. Is that

what she looks like?

Is like

For somebody? Go home. She need

to go home with somebody. She needs

to go home with somebody. With somebody.

She talks to you.

This has been a great, conversation. Where can people get information online about Pawsible? Mission Pawsible. Mission Pawsible.

Mission Pawsible. You can always give us a call at 614-525-6200. Any of our staff that answer the phone could guide you on what are the available resources and how to get connected. Also reaching in to the dog shelter directly if you're interested in any of their programs, whether it be just a volunteer or whether it's the foster or you're curious about what are the other, just reach in and I'll let you tell them how to do that. Yeah. Just go

to our website or you can call. It's usually easier to go to the website and send a message because our phones do not stop ringing. So it may take a while

to get back to you

on the phone, but we get back a lot quicker on the Internet. I do wanna add, if you already have a dog in your home, your parents do, one thing is to make sure they're microchipped.

Yeah.

We

have clinics that do that for free. We will do it for free. If you are unsure, we'll scan them. We'll make sure that information's up to date. And the other thing we found is sometimes the older population are hesitate to come in and claim their dog because they don't wanna pay that expense. We've got some programs in the work and lots of times we have promotions that will help you with that. We're gonna do everything again in our power to reunite. Never be afraid to come

in here and claim your pet. It's always best

to come versus calling because we have so many dogs. And to come versus calling because we have so many dogs. It is really hard for us to distinguish your pet. Your pet's gonna recognize you as soon as you walk down that hallway. Mhmm. So don't get discouraged. Those programs

in effect give a dog a scholarship out to go back home. Yes. The way you look at it. Great way to look at it. Yep. You know, getting them all getting them we wanna get them back home. So I'm glad we we had those outlets available. And this has been a great conversation, directors, talking about Mission Possible and just just one more way that Franklin County is focused on improving the lives of all of our residents and putting them in a position and not just, survive, but thrive.

And and having that all the complete things that they need, to be, as complete as Pawsible. So as I've said many times on talking to county, we cover a little bit of everything. And the longer we own, wherever you get your podcast, you will hear about even more, exciting people, places, pets, things. We're gonna cover it all on top of the county. And this has been our who let the dogs out edition. Including here with Frank County. I repeat, this is the who let the dogs out edition. So if you wanna see what our dogs are out at, come to the Franklin County Animal Shelter address.

Yes. Director Persinger. We are on Tamarac Road. We are off Morse right behind Kroger's and Menards.

So you directed Kaye at Franklin County. Yes. Animal shelter if you want a lifetime friend. And we are concluding this podcast with my parting words. Do you. Nobody else has time to.