Some Hampshire county senior citizens are getting more food from Meals on Wheels, but it's not just for the seniors anymore. The program in Amherst and Pelham now cater to the four-legged companions.

We followed Amherst Meals on Wheels volunteer Daniel Clapp as he made his daily food deliveries. With coolers in the back of his car filled with food for the seniors, today there is something extra in there: dog and cat food. Maurice Hatt, one of the residents to whom Clapp delivers, says feeding his pet has become far too costly lately.

So when the Amherst Senior Center started offering food for cats and dogs, the seniors on Clapp's route jumped at the opportunity, even though at first, Clapp thought it was a joke.

"I had just envisioned this as a human food sort of distribution, but the more I thought about it and realized they weren't kidding, the more I realized what a valuable service it is to the elderly," he said.

According to the Meals on Wheels director at Amherst Senior Center, Ferne Finger, the Meals for Pets program was started about six weeks ago. The seniors who are receiving food through this program are on very fixed income. So before this program started, it was very tough to afford food for their pets, let alone themselves.

One senior citizen CBS 3 Springfield visited on Thursday didn't want to talk on camera, but told us he was spending upward of $40.00 a month to feed his cat, and sometimes didn't have enough food. Now he has a surplus.

"It's nice to support the elderly and enable them to take care of their pet as well as themselves in times of difficult economic situations," said Clapp.

The food is donated by the Dakin Pioneer Valley Humane Society, and a volunteer makes a delivery to the Senior Center every Thursday, providing more than enough food for its elderly.

"They have all this extra food that they get every week, and they got more than enough for the shelter, and so they want to be able to give it away to people who need it, especially the elderly," said Finger. "I always think someday I will need the service that I am giving to others, and I feel that every little thing that we can do to help a senior is important in their lives."

For more information about the Meals on Wheels program in Amherst, and to inquire about donations of pet food, call Ferne Finger at the Senior Center: (413) 259-3164.