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October 11, 2018  |  By Jeremy Rodriguez In Dementia, Health & Wellness

The Best Dogs for Elderly Adults

Senior woman in wheelchair with dog in autumn nature. Senior woman on a walk.

Elderly adults in care facilities can experience a range of emotions, including depression and loneliness. Luckily, a furry little friend may help a senior by providing companionship and assistance with daily activities.

Benefits of Service Dogs

Dogs are able to sense human emotions and can provide love and affection to those in need. Even petting a dog releases oxytocin, which contributes to happy emotions.

Specifically, service dogs can help with the following tasks:

  • Picking up dropped objects
  • Alerting hearing-impaired seniors to sounds, such as smoke alarms
  • Bringing an emergency phone to the owner
  • Keeping away strangers
  • Waking up the owner
  • Turning on lights
  • Providing directions to a safe walking path

Benefits For Dementia Patients

Dogs are able to read and respond to people’s impulses and emotions, making them perfect for dementia patients and their needs. Service dogs can help dementia patients by:

    • Carrying a GPS locator in their collar to help families find a lost loved one and in turn, help guide the owner home
    • Assisting with daily tasks such as waking up and providing reminders about medications and eating
    • Evoking memories and reminiscing
    • Helping them stick to a routine
    • Improving socialization and offering a conversation starter
    • Keeping the dementia patient from walking out of their home alone

   Download A Free Guide to Understanding Dementia

Best Dogs For Elderly People

Here is a round-up of some good dogs for elderly people, along with some great reasons to snuggle up and love them.

  • French bulldog
    • Great walking partner
    • Small
    • Solid companion
  • Shih Tzu
    • Easy to train
    • Minimal shedding, which makes it a great dog for elderly people with allergies
    • Gets along with children
  • Poodle
    • Easy to train
    • Playful and energetic
    • Minimal shedding
  • Maltese
    • Lap dogs/great companions
    • Easy to clean
    • Small and portable, making it perfect for traveling
  • Pomeranian
    • Affectionate and loving
    • Virtually scentless, making it ideal for indoors
    • Small and easy to pick up
  • Schipperke
    • High energy level and exercise-ready
    • Weighs 12-18 pounds
    • Inquisitive
  • Pembroke Welsh corgi
    • Active
    • Easy-going
    • Intelligent
  • Beagle
    • Low grooming needs
    • Playful
    • Great with kids
  • Havanese
    • Coat that is easy to maintain with regular brushing
    • Loving and playful
    • Peaceful and gentle
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Griswold Caring Times
About the Blog

Founded in 2006, CaringTimes is a resource center for those seeking home care information and support as they care for elderly parents and research senior in-home care options. Our mission is to celebrate, educate, and advocate aging issues. We highlight available resources and share our expertise during a very difficult and challenging time in many adults’ lives.

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The CaringTimes blog pro­vides gen­eral infor­ma­tion and dis­cus­sion to promote broad consumer understanding and knowledge about various health-related topics. The information, including but not limited to, text, graphics, images and linked materials within this blog are not intended and should not be interpreted as med­ical advice. If the reader or any other per­son has a med­ical con­cern, he or she should con­sult with a licensed physi­cian or other qualified health care provider. Never forgo pro­fes­sional med­ical advice or delay in seek­ing medical attention because of some­thing you have read on this blog or in any of the linked materials. If you think you may have a med­ical emer­gency, call your doc­tor immediately.
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