We have seen an increasing trend amongst our Assisted Living and Senior Independent Living projects for the inclusion of accommodations for Man’s Best Friend on the site. Many new communities are being built with outdoor fenced areas for Fido to run and do his or her duty.
Research has shown that seniors having pets around is beneficial from many perspectives. They reduce stress, they have been found to help lower blood pressure, they increase social interaction, increase physical activity and can help a Senior Resident to learn. Pets have been found to reduce depression amongst seniors and loneliness. Pet’s live in the here and now which can benefit a senior by helping them to also live similarly instead of dwelling on what might happen or did in the past. Pets have also been found to help revive memory by assisting with old memory recall from when a senior might have had a pet earlier in their life.
With all these potential benefits, it is easy to see why so many new senior living communities are including accommodations for man’s best friends. These accommodations can be relatively simple and not extremely cost prohibitive to incorporate into a project.
A small grassy area with a fenced enclosure to allow the dog to run free are all that is needed. Typically this feature is only several thousand dollars for the fence enclosure and requires only a plot of grass the size of a typical assisted living unit.
Make your next Senior Community cutting edge with this type of feature and help your residents increase the quality of their life while living in their new home.
Peter Douglas, P.E.
President
The Douglas Company
