Senior Foster Dog Inspires a Social Media Movement
Fostering (then adopting) Stevie led pet mom Lisa to launch a social media campaign in support of senior dogs.
From the moment my husband and I started fostering Stevie, we knew she was special. She was our 29th foster dog from Muttville Senior Dog Rescue, and as soon as we brought her home, we knew we had to keep her.
We could not believe that this perfect, happy, amazing 9-year-old dog was found running the streets here in the Bay Area. With her radiant toothless smile, and her absolute love of life, Stevie brightens my day every single day just by being her—and she helps me spread the word about the joys of fostering senior dogs. We share our day-to-day life together on social media (with her two senior sisters as well) so people can see what foster life is like behind the scenes.
Stevie regularly appears on my Instagram, helping me create content from reels to IGTV educational videos and more. Although I have been sharing my foster dogs on social media for quite a while, Stevie has really been the dog who has inspired me to do so much more.
I realized that there is still a lack of awareness and knowledge about what it means to foster senior dogs. With Stevie as my muse, I felt compelled to begin creating content to try and educate people in fun and creative ways. While I know this may not sound very big, the impact that she and I have made together is immeasurable. One of our top posts is a fun reel where I answer commonly asked questions about fostering and dispel a few myths. This video ended up going viral and was seen by over 41,000 people.
We get constant Instagram comments and messages from people saying I have inspired them to start fostering or even to foster or adopt a senior dog. Every single one of those messages means the world to me. I know that I am truly making a difference, and just by spreading my message, I am saving more wonderful dogs like Stevie.
Stevie is living proof that not all senior dogs are old and sick. Seniors are so deserving of love and still have so much love to give—and through social media, thousands and thousands of people have been able to see that.
Together, Stevie and I are changing the stigma that senior dogs are “unadoptable.” In addition to fostering dogs and volunteering with Muttville, we will continue to use our social media platform to let everyone know that fostering is important, and senior dogs are amazing.
Each year, Petco Love Stories invites adopters to share how their pets have changed their lives to give the organizations that they’ve adopted from the chance to receive grant awards. This story by Lisa won Muttville Senior Dog Rescue in San Francisco, California a 2021 Love Stories award.
