It's time to meet our newest older dog looking for her new forever family after her person passed away. Get to know Jelly, a relaxed basenji blended girl, in a new interview by Calvin our canine correspondent. You'll fall in love with this adoptable girl.

Photo credit: fuzzy beastie photography

Learn all about this 12-year-old senior sweetie in a charming and candid conversation with Calvin the mischievous terrier from small club: big adventures for small dogs. 

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I love dogs. Seriously, I love all dogs, which is why I ended up having so much fun hanging out in the Mission District on Sunday. Of course I wished my dog could have been with me but she is almost blind, and doesn't walk more than a few blocks at a time these days. Cleo is an old gal who is happier "watching the house" with her papa and scamming Scooby Snacks for successfully navigating the hallway.

My love for San Francisco, its neighborhoods, and supporting the community however got me out of the house. My love for dogs kept me away for a few hours on this chilly overcast summer day. I got a chance to experience my first Sunday Streets. The Sunday Streets program allows dogs, kids on bikes, locals and summer visitors alike to spend an afternoon hanging out together along an avenue closed to car traffic. I spied an advice booth, lots of handicrafts, a couple of bands, a DJ mixing up tunes for people to dance to, and even a funny Frida Kahlo look-alike contest. The many blocks of Valencia Street that were closed had lots of space so people and dogs had room to walk and enjoy themselves without being overwhelmed. Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves.

This cutie showed us how much they were loving the music - that tail sure can keep a beat!

Some say they are afraid of giving their heart to an older dog because they fear being heartbroken when the dog eventually passes away. I say, don't be scared. Your heart is a muscle. It needs exercise. It needs to work out in order to be healthy. Don't let it atrophy. Your heart will thank you for risking it on a loving bond with an older dog.

It feels like climbing up and down San Francisco's famous hills. Your heart pounds and the blood flows. Some moments are easy while others have you struggling to keep going. But you have a purpose, a goal, a reason to keep going and once you reach the crest..boom. The beauty of the view makes it all worthwhile.

Don't miss out on experiencing love and a warm beating heart by not having an older dog in your life. Loving an older dog and making a commitment to their well-being is like strength training at the gym. You will feel stronger, better for your efforts, even when your heart gets squeezed with grief.

Why should you give your heart to an older dog? Here are eight reasons:

Via DailyCal.org

Go ahead, give a dog a bone — but make it low fat.

Jas Mattu, a veterinarian for Berkeley-based University Veterinary Hospital, is raising awareness of the pet obesity epidemic. According to the Association for Pet Obesity Prevention, more than half of cats and dogs in the United States are overweight or obese.

Mattu said the fault lies with humans, not with their pets. Some physical causes of pet obesity, such as too much food and not enough exercise, are clear cut. But other contributing factors, like human obesity and a sense that well-fed pets are better cared for, add to the problem.

“Our pets give us love, and we are letting our personal desire to give back, to feed them and give them more and more food, lead to health problems,” Mattu said. “Don’t kill your pets with love.”

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Why do we support PAWS? Ask the Vet

Dog lovers don't need lame surveys

Calling all dog lovers! We want to meet you this Sunday in the Mission District of San Francisco! We'll be on Valencia Street joining in the Sunday Streets Pet Program. It's our first time and we can't wait!

www.SundayStreetsSF.com

Come join us at the Sunday Streets Mission Pet Program!

July 28, 2013 - 11:00am to 4:00pm

We'll be in the Mission conducting spontaneous and fun interviews with fellow dog lovers! Be sure to follow us because we'll be sharing our day via Instagram, Facebook and Twitter. The best video interviews will get posted on our blog! Shy and don't want your photo taken? We'll have audio recordings going on too.

 Come down to Valencia Street between 18th and 20th Streets to find us.

Make a donation. Get a thank you gift.

If you follow us on social media, you might notice that one of the San Francisco nonprofits we are big supporters of is Pets Are Wonderful Support (PAWS). On Sunday we'll be collecting donations for PAWS. In exchange, we will have really cool thank you gifts courtesy of LIFE+DOG Magazine.

Don't know who is PAWS yet? Here are five things you should know:

(1) They're based in the Mission on 23rd and Shotwell

(2) They've been in the city for more than 25 years

(3) They help keep low income seniors and the disabled together with their pets

(4) They are privately funded

(5) The hard work of more than 500 volunteers is one the secrets to their longevity.

Here is a map of the area that will be closed to cars

Learn more about the Sunday Streets Program in San Francisco

We hope to see you there!!!  We'll be wearing our PAWS Baseball Shirt!

One special side effect of spending time with a rescued older dog is seeing their makeovers. Their personalities blossom along with their adorability. 

Meet Hercules

Once Muttville volunteers bathed this lil ragamuffin and trimmed some of his matted hair, everyone realized what a looker this tiny boy is. Hercules has a big personality in a little body! He loves his stuffed doggy and carries it everywhere with him.

Is Hercules real or is he a stuffed animal!?? Come meet him and you'll discover he's a living doll.

http://www.muttville.org/mutt/hercules-1834

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Sweet Senior Dog of the Week: Zorro

Can a blended rescue dog become an AKC National Champion?

Squee! Actually this lil' lady is no joke, she could be my wingman any day! What a cutie. Look at that face! She came in with her Daddy, so maybe it was a father-daughter outing because it's Friday. Either way, Miércoles (Wednesday in Spanish) could teach etiquette lessons, what a total doll. 

My dog Cleo is a big part of why I started Grouchy Puppy four years ago. She showed me that dog adoption is worth the risk. Cleo is my first blended dog, and has since convinced me that you don't have to be a pure bred dog to be smart and cute. A rescue dog can give fearlessly and influence positively. I'm forever grateful to the San Francisco SPCA because they saw Cleo's potential at a shelter. They gave us a chance to have this wonderful life with her, and gave this dog a chance to be the ambassador and success story that she is today.

Roo the rescue and new role model

Roo the rescue dog is a new local success story that began at the SF SPCA. Her tale will make you cheer and cry at the same time. This previously abandoned dog is the first rescue mix to become a national agility champion!?! How did she go from rambunctious pup running loose near the Excelsior District to the 2013 AKC National Agility Champion? Read this amazing San Francisco story to find out how Stacey Campbell, SF SPCA dog trainer, and longtime volunteer trainer for Muttville Senior Dog Rescue, sees Roo's potential and guides her all the way to the top! Enjoy this wonderfully inspirational story, it reminds me a little of National Velvet. Roo along with Stacey's loving dedication is why I believe in the power of the human animal bond, adoption, and blended dogs.

One of my childhood dogs was named Zorro, for peeing on my older sister's bed. This simple act made us the best of buddies and comrades in arms against sibling tyranny. Seriously, he was a super sweet dog just like this week's adoptable senior dog from Muttville. Meet Zorro. Bet you'll become best of friends too.

What a great big sweet boy Zorro is! Bewildered to end up in an animal shelter, because he didn’t do anything except be the happy playful dog that he is.

He is a wonderful 12 year old black lab mix with loads of charm. This guy still has lots of play left in him, too.

He loves other dogs, big and small, and people, too. Zorro weighs 50 pounds but could stand to put on some weight, he's skinny! His skin was itchy and infected - but he was a good boy for his medicated bath and under all the scabs and dirt was a wonderful shiny black coat! We love Zorro and you will, too!

Come meet Zorro via Muttville

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Sweet Senior Dog of the Week: Cesar

Meet Adoptable Senior Dog of the Week: Mr. Dees

Do dog activists help animal rights, or would an advocate make a greater difference? A friend of mine says, words have power. She said this as both warning and I believe, inspiration. When my July/August issue arrived from Best Friends this week I got to thinking about the terms activist and advocate. Does the power of both these words influence positively animal welfare? How does someone measure that effectiveness? Is it more important to act? I've tried to be careful with my word choices for years. Working in the financial services world, I used to have legal and compliance reviewing my word choices, sentences, even font choices. So I'm curious, what you think about these words and how do they make you feel?

Who knew Alec Baldwin was an animal activist

Via Travel CNN

Dog yoga.

Canine love motels.

Social "petworking" sites.

Now you can add frequent flier programs to the roll call of slightly odd but nevertheless interesting, and for some, useful, pet amenities.

Virgin Australia has become the latest to introduce a scheme that rewards pet lovers for taking their animals with them.

It's Australia's first frequent flier program for pets.

Read the full story