One of the most common misconceptions about comparing a dog’s age to a human’s age is to take the dog’s age and multiply it by seven.
While dogs definitely do age a lot faster in one year than a human does, there really is not any one number that you can use to multiply the dog’s age and come up with an accurate equivalency in human years. If you look at equivalency charts published by experts, you will see that few agree exactly on an equivalency rate.
The reason it was believed that one dog year is equivalent to seven human years is simply that dogs do age faster than human beings.
There are many factors that affect aging – whether it is humans or canines. A dog’s breed, size and gender affect the aging process. Living conditions, environment, health care and nutrition play a role. Individual traits and the amount of affection a dog gets also have an effect on aging.
Experts do agree that larger breed dogs have a shorter life span than smaller breeds. This does not mean that a Doberman that has an average life expectancy of 15 won’t outlive a Chihuahua that has a longer life expectancy.
The average life expectancy for larger breeds is 13 years of age. Smaller breeds have a slightly higher average around 15 years old.
Genetics are a big factor in how long a dog lives. Mixed breeds tend to live longer because they have more genetic diversity.
Some breeds are prone to certain diseases that can decrease the number of years they live. Allergies and hip dysplasia are two of the common problems that can shorten a dog’s life span.
Experts do disagree on a formula to accurately equate a dog’s years to human years. One formula says that a dog about to turn three years of age is approximately 21 years old in people years. Once a dog reaches the age of three, he or she ages four years to every human year. While this formula does make sense in a way, it isn’t really accurate for larger breed dogs that may not live past the age of eight or nine.
Another formula is based on a dog’s weight. For example, dogs that weigh more than 40 pounds are likely to be older than 21 human years of age by the time the canine is two dog years old.
Another formula that is based on the weight of a dog states that a dog is 20 to 30 people years old by the time they have reached the age of two in dog years. It is believed that the dog will age by four to seven people years for each additional dog year.
The bottom line is that smaller breeds are more likely to live longer than larger breeds, but you can help extend any dogs life by providing a healthy diet, exercise and lots of love.
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