People like to stay in their homes while they age. Many older people are lonely and don't get out much. Having a pet is often the interaction that makes life enjoyable for someone who is housebound.

When you get older and have less mobility it is hard to care for a pet, yet having a pet increases one's physical health and mental wellbeing.

Conversely, many people desire to have a pet but are not in a situation where they are allowed to have one, or feel they cannot devote enough time for the daily interaction that pet ownership requires.

I propose a community service pilot program where volunteers are matched with pet owners with less mobility.

The main action for the volunteer would be exercising or playing with the owner's pet, but in doing so the owner also gets some regular human interaction.

The same (or ideally a differently positioned) volunteer could also make a phone call each week to remind the owner that they are coming on their designated day/time and to make sure that the last visit was good for both parties.

This type of involvement could work well for highschool and college students that may be after community service hours as part of their educational requirements, though any aged person could just want to increase another's enjoyment in life.

I see this as a symbiotic matching of existing resources with existing needs.