Pets sustain us and keep us healthier, happier and more hopeful as we age, no barks or meows about it. A recent story in Harvard Magazine cited an American Heart Association finding that pets reduce our mortality rate by 24 percent and the Mayo Clinic confirms pets keep us in much better shape, both physically and mentally. But new challenges emerge as we age, including medical diagnoses that can keep us away from our furry, feathered friends or make it impossible to care for them, as well as unforeseen financial issues and living arrangements that change our capacity to care or keep them. These are tough scenarios to imagine, but…