Although there’s no doubt you have always loved your pets with all your heart, senior pets simply require additional love and care as they move through their golden years. They may start to experience issues, such as vision loss, joint pain, and an overall decline in mobility, which make it hard to navigate their world as well as before. Thankfully, you can take the following steps to make their lives easier and more comfortable despite their newfound challenges.

Clear the Walkways

Senior pets do not have the ability and energy to navigate around obstacles as they make their way through the house. For that reason, it is important to clear the walkways of clutter to create easy to navigate pathways here and there. Make the clear pathways at least two to three times as wide as your pet to give them plenty of room to walk between each room.

Add Non-Slip Flooring

Senior pets start to lose their grip on slippery floors as they age. They may begin to slip and slide around as arthritis and other joint issues leave them unstable on their legs. To help them through this challenge, consider installing plush carpet in their favorite rooms instead of hardwood or laminate. If you are not ready for that big of a change, then at least lie down non-slip rugs in all the rooms with slippery floors. Also, block off any areas without carpeted walkways to avoid slips and falls.

Cover Sharp Edges

Since senior pets cannot see as well as they used to, they cannot avoid sharp corners and edges on furniture and doors. If they seem to bump into these areas often, you can cushion the edges with soft bumpers. You can buy premade corner and edge guards or make your own from pool noodles or high-density foam blocks. Watch as your pet navigates through the house to see just where to install the bumpers.

Get Portable Ramps

If you let your pets up on the furniture, you might notice they are unable to hop up as easily as before upon entering the golden years. Even if they can manage to hop up on the couch or bed, the trip back down could result in disaster. To prevent that issue and make their lives a little easier, invest in portable ramps for several rooms. You can move the ramps around as needed to keep your pet by your side where they undoubtedly want to be all day long. Do not forget to put one by the front windows to let your pet look outside without straining their old joints.

Elevate Their Bowls

You can help ease the pain of arthritis and digestive issues, which are also common in senior pets, by elevating their food and water bowls. You can either pick up a tall feeding station or build your own using a stool. It is even possible to create a built-in elevated feeding station alongside your kitchen counters or wherever you like to feed your pets. No matter what design you choose, make sure the bowls sit level with your pet’s chest.

Lay Out Orthopedic Beds

When aching joints make it difficult to move around, pets may choose to rest much of the day away. You can ease their discomfort quite a bit by providing them with several orthopedic beds made from memory foam. Even pets who are given permission to lie on the couch will choose these soft cushions instead to rest their painful joints. The memory foam reduces pressure on their joints, relieving their pain and even helping reduce inflammation.

Build a Tile Pet Shower

As your pet ages, their ability to easily hop in and out of the tub diminishes greatly. Their tolerance for visiting the groomer may also decrease, leaving you without a surefire way to get them clean. Thankfully, you can work around that problem by building a tile pet shower. Consider using natural stone to improve their grip on the wet surface without compromising on aesthetics. If you prefer a glossier tile finish, place a towel on the shower floor before having your pet step inside to give them a non-slip surface to stand on.

By making your home a truly pet-friendly space for your senior dog or cat, you can help them overcome all the challenges that come their way. As a result of your DIY home improvements, they will no longer struggle to navigate through the house and get comfortable in each room.

About The Author

Marie A. writes in-depth articles, web pages, whitepapers, and more to help her clients achieve their marketing goals. Her content helps customers move through the buyer's journey with confidence and make the best purchase decisions possible. She always aims to educate and delight her readers to help her clients build an excellent reputation and following. Marie has more than two decades experience raising and training dogs. She regularly works with her super smart border collies and red heeler using balanced training principles. Her cat, Rocket, also enjoys participating in the training sessions, though he largely remains aloof and surly.

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