October 2008
Rescue dogs: Seniors with some livin' left to do
Senior editor Leslie Smith travels to Muttville – and learns that for some dogs, life begins when there’s a place to call home.
Sherri Franklin is making up for lost time. Until age 35, she hadn’t so much as walked a dog, let alone shared her home with one. These days, however, she lives amongst an entire pack. Franklin is the founder of Muttville-a sanctuary for senior dogs whose time has come to… keep on living.
Emphasis on living. Though comfort and quality of life are primary concerns, Muttville isn’t just hospice care or an infirmary with a clever name. It’s not her aim, she says, to prolong life simply for the sake of staving off the inevitable. Rather, it’s to make sure healthy, older dogs can continue to thrive-and to give dogs who’ve never known affection and compassion a chance to experience it before they go.
[A description of Smith’s visit to Muttville follows.]
