Special Features - Mission Seniors 55+ July 2015

Seniors WEEK

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Mission Seniors Living 55 Plus is dedicated to our seniors. We welcome story submissions and photos. E-mail submissions to Carol Aun at carolaun@missioncityrecord.comPUBLISHED BY THE MISSION RECORD

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July 2015A monthly guide to events, resources and services for Mission Seniors

Brandon KOSTINUKMISSION RECORD

The best medication may come with four legs and fur.

According to Mission resident Heather Andrew who turns 70 next month, her Shitsu-West Highland ter-rier named Holly fills a void nothing else but the presence of her grandkids can fill.

“We eat together, Holly has to have company to eat,” Andrew jokes.

She inherited the dog from her god-mother, six or seven years ago, she says.

“She is very much a health benefit, especially since my husband passed about three-and-a-half years ago,” says Andrew.

“[Holly’s] gentle, loving, cute … [and] something to hold on to.”

As a companion she’s “useful in spades,” says Andrew.

Stephanie Stanton-Linder, a pro-fessional dog trainer and owner of Allstars K9 Training in Mission, says she definitely believes in the healing

properties of animals, especially dogs.Dogs are non-judgmental, they offer

companionship and it’s something to take care of so they offer a degree of daily responsibility and purpose, explains Stanton-Linder.

She recalls the affect her certified therapy dog Maggie had on seniors, when they visited the local hospital.

“Sometimes they would just sit with her and pet her. You see them smile. You see their faces just change,” said Stanton-Linder.

Studies have shown that pet own-ership, by seniors especially, can help reduce stress, lower blood pressure, increase social interaction and phys-ical activity.

A three-year study conducted by the Baker Medical Research Institute in Melbourne, Australia demonstrated, from a base of nearly 6,000 people, that pet owners had lower blood pres-sure and cholesterol and triglyceride (type of fat found in blood) levels, than those who did not own a pet.

The research further extended that

other factors such as personal differ-ences between smoking habits, diet, weight or socio-economic position could not explain away the positive results.

And the benefits doesn’t just stop at heart health.

Depression is another area pets have shown to help alleviate.

Combating the symptoms associ-ated with the mental illness such as bouts of sadness, the urge to remain inactive, loss of appetite or tempera-mental outbursts, can be quelled with the presence of a pet.

Micky Niego of ASPCA Animal Watch wrote in his 1992 book Rx: Animals, “There are instances when an animal can reach an individual in way that another human cannot.

“Acceptance and attention from an animal can restore feelings of self-worth and lift one from the seat of despair, depression and boredom.”

Thus, if you’re lonely and have the time, a companion dog may be the route to go, said Stanton-Linder.

FURRY FRIENDS

MAKE THE BEST MEDS

Mission resident’s experience supports

evidence pets are good for health

Heather Andrew and her dog Holly. KEVIN MILLS PHOTO