Celebrate Amelia’s 16th Birthday

Update 3/14: “Wow, you all blew through our goal for senior pets—thank you! But we’re not done yet: the campaign will remain open through April 10, and new donations will go toward supporting the Richmond SPCA’s Pet Pantry“.

Hollie Lutz invites you to join in celebrating her beloved pup, Amelia Bedelia Earhart Bloomer Lutz (also known as Meels), on her 16th birthday, on April 10, 2025. In honor of Amelia’s upcoming birthday, she and Hollie are fundraising to cover the adoption fees for 16 senior pets through the Richmond SPCA’s Seniors for Seniors program. This program matches senior adopters (ages 60 and older) with senior pets (ages 5 and older). Adopters also receive:

• Personalized assistance from our adoption staff in finding a senior cat or dog who fits the adopter’s home and lifestyle
• A welcome home kit for your new pet
  • For cats: litter box, food and water bowls, litter scoop, toy and a cardboard scratcher
  • For dogs: leash, collar, food and water bowls and a toy
• Discounted adoption fee of $50
• Access to low-cost veterinary care at our Susan M. Markel Veterinary Hospital

“Senior pets are all too often overlooked at shelters, even though they (like Amelia) are chill, cuddly and living their best lives through the joy of routine. At the same time, there’s a mountain of evidence about the health and wellness benefits of pet companionship for, well, any of us – but especially older adults. ‘Seniors for Seniors’ is a win-win.

Caring for Amelia is the greatest pleasure of my life. As I thought about a 16th birthday gift for her, I was coming up empty: she already gets whatever she wants, mostly because her pleasures are small and simple. Let her sidle up to you, give her a little rotisserie chicken, and she’ll look at you with hearts shooting out of her eyes. Follow that with an 8-hour ‘office nap,’ and she’s had the best day of her life. Seeing this every day, I realized the best present to Amelia is to share the gift of a senior pet with someone else.

Today, at nearly 16, she lives with occasional seizures due to a slow-growing brain tumor. She is also completely deaf and a partially blind, but this doesn’t hold her back one bit. She continues to defy vets’ expectations – I think because she is hellbent on keeping her humans in line and is having way too much fun doing it. (She’s been training me since she was 8 weeks old, after all.)

Thank you for being a part of this fundraiser, and for loving the human and pet companions in your life. Thank you for caring about Amelia. You DO make a difference. Now let’s share the love of a lifetime with 16 pets!“

We are incredibly grateful to Hollie for providing a happy and loving home to Ameila, and choosing to request donations to support senior pets that will come into our care and our Pet Pantry. To make a gift in honor of Ameila’s 16th birthday, please complete the following online donation form.