Nourishing Pets Program

Furry Friends Provide Companionship and Emotional Support for Seniors Living Alone

One in four seniors live alone, and for many of them, their pet is their closest companion and a consistent source of joy and comfort. But feeding, grooming, and caring for pets can be challenging, especially for seniors living on a fixed income. Meals on Wheels Chicago wants to ensure seniors never have to choose between feeding their pets and feeding themselves.

We Provide Hundreds of Low-Income Seniors With Free Essentials for Their Pets

At the Nourish Chicago Pantry, seniors with pets receive animal care packs for cats and dogs that include food, treats, and toys. These packs are made possible by corporate sponsorship and help ensure seniors can continue to take care of their pets. Healthy pets are happy pets, and that means love, cuddles, and companionship for our seniors.

Thank You Mather For Sponsoring The Nourishing Pets Program

Meals on Wheels Chicago is thrilled to announce Mather will sponsor The Nourishing Pets Program in 2025. Their support means seniors will have access to free Pet Packs to ensure they can continue to care for the pets that are so important to their overall health and wellbeing. Mather is dedicated to creating Ways to Age Well, and that includes providing free wellness programs to Chicagoland older adults, as well as supporting the relationship between seniors and their pets. Their research area Mather Institute has authored an orange paper related to pet ownership and wellness for older adults. Read more here.

“The pet program is so valuable for people like me, seniors with pets. Every time I bring that Pet Pack home Papa knows it’s HIS bag and he gets so excited. I’m his momma. He can understand me and he lets me know things with his eyes.”

— ANNETTE & HER DOG PAPA

Help Fund This Program

Help Fill Pet Packs by Donating Items from our Amazon Wish List

See Our Wishlist

About the Program

The Nourishing Pets Program is designed to keep our seniors’ pets happy and healthy. Each Pet Pack contains a supply of food, treats, and toys. On occasion, we offer other pet care and wellness items such as pet shampoos, preventative medicine, dental hygiene products, brushes, and more.
We offer one Pet Pack for cats and another for dogs. The items in each pack are specific for the animal type.
Meals on Wheels Chicago distributes Pet Packs at the monthly Nourish Chicago Pantry. The Nourish Chicago Pantry is hosted at the Central West Senior Center, 2102 W. Ogden Ave. Chicago, IL 60612 on the fourth Tuesday of every month. Click here to learn more and see upcoming dates and times.
During the food distribution, visit the Nourishing Pets table. A Meals on Wheels Chicago staff member will help you enroll. To enroll, we collect basic information including your name, age, ethnicity, and your pet’s information - name, age, pet type, weight, and preferred food type. After you enroll, we guarantee a Pet Pack for your animal at the next Nourish Chicago Pantry distribution.
You must be 55 years or older to enroll in this program.
We offer Pet Packs at zero cost to those who sign up for the program. The cost is covered by donors and corporate sponsors.

Pet Packs are available once per month during the Nourish Chicago Pantry.
We limit seniors to two Pet Packs per month for their cats and dogs.
We invite our donors, corporate partners, and grantmakers to support this program. In fact, it is not possible without their support!
If you are interested in donating, please visit our donation page here. For other program support, please contact us.
We appreciate your generosity and thoughtfulness in wanting to support our Nourishing Pet Program! Regrettably, we are unable to accept donations of pre-owned pet items at this time. if you would like, please visit our Amazon Wish List to contribute items that senior pet owners need.