AUSTIN, Texas — Meals on Wheels of Central Texas is expanding its services to include its clients' furry friends.

The Pets Assisting the Lives of Seniors, or PALS, is a new program that helps elderly and disabled clients get assistance such as pet food and veterinary care.

PALS partnered up with the Texas Veterinary Medical Association to provide free veterinary services, which include preventative care, rabies shots and heartworm treatments.

One of those pets is Ivon, a 4-year-old German Shepherd, who helps his owner, Thomas Snyder, see. He says the new program is of great help, especially for those with limited mobility.

“It’s the kind of service where walking the dog, providing food, the medical care - those are the kinds of services that allows someone who has a disability or aged or both, to be able to keep on going,” he said.

The PALS program currently serves 400 people who, on average, have about two pets.

There's a waiting list and the program is asking for more donations and veterinarians to help out.