They have experienced abandonment, old age or illness… but some animals today find a happy end of life in these spaces unlike any other.
Some have lost their lifelong best friend, some have simply grown old without ever finding a home. However, their story does not end there: rare and unexpected places offer them a second chance, the possibility of living a final chapter full of happiness. Places where they are taken care of until the end, with gentleness and dignity, and where they will never be alone again.
We knew the concept of bringing animals to nursing homes, to brighten up the residents’ days a little and soothe their loneliness: nothing better than caressing an adorable doggie to lift your spirits. But many do not know that there are also special retirement homes… intended for animals. There, no walkers or dentures, but cats and dogs at the end of their lives: too old or too sick, they have never found a family to adopt them in their respective shelters, and therefore come to live their last chapter in these havens of peace where they are kings. Some were abandoned, others were saved from an unjust fate, and still others found themselves alone when their master died… But they all discovered a new life by arriving in these refuges like no other.
It is in the Gard, in Pont Saint-Esprit, that the very first retirement home for animals opened its doors. “Thanks to the legacy of a faithful friend of animals”as it indicates on its website, the Animal Assistance Foundation was therefore able to launch this great initiative which has now been extended to other departments. In Yvelines, Corsica, Eure-et-Loir and even in the Alpes-Maritimes, several shelters welcome four-legged grandpas and grandmas. Hundreds of dogs and cats enjoy their old days there, sometimes surrounded by parrots, guinea pigs or even goats. “A retirement home where we care, where we love, where we respect and where we do not euthanize“, this is the credo of these extraordinary homes.
On its website, the Animal Assistance Foundation explains that it is possible for elderly owners or those unable to care for their companions to make testamentary arrangements to ensure their future. If you don’t know what will happen to your animal in the event of death, you can indicate in a will that you want it to go to one of these retirement homes. You will of course have to inform the Foundation, which will take care to reserve a place for your little protégé.
