Surely on more than one occasion you have heard the theory that one year of human life is equivalent to seven of a dog. However, this statement is nothing more than a myth. Dogs age at a very different rate than ours, so to calculate their life expectancy a wide variety of factors must be taken into account, the breed being one of the most important.
If you are wondering how long a dog lives, we recommend that you join us in the next article on our site where we explain everything what you should know about the life expectancy of dogs by breed.
Factors that affect the life expectancy of a dog
Surely you have heard that small dogs have a longer life expectancy than large dogs. However, breed is not the only factor that affects the longevity of our pets. In this section, we explain the different conditions that can determine the life expectancy of dogs.
Race or Size
As a general rule, larger mammalian species have a longer life expectancy than small species. For example, it is known by all that elephants or whales are much longer-lived species than mice.
However, this fact contradicts what occurs within the races of the same species, since there is evidence that within the species, the individuals more large have a hope of shorter lifespanThis is especially evident in the canine species, in which it has been shown that for every 2 kg of weight, life expectancy decreases by around 1 month.
The life expectancy of a species depends on:
- The moment when its senescence begins.
- Your aging rate.
- Your mortality rate.
In the specific case of dogs, it seems that the wide variability in life expectancy between breeds is fundamentally due to the rate of agingLarge dogs, due to their higher growth rate and the greater metabolic wear of their body, age at a notably faster rate than small dogs, hence they are less long-lived animals.
If at this point you are wondering how long is a year in dogs, you should know that there is no single answer. The rate of aging varies depending on the age and size of the breed, so we must take these factors into account when calculating the equivalence between human and canine life years. Here's how you can calculate this correlation:
- To begin with, we must consider that the first year of dogs corresponds to about 15 human years in small/medium breeds and about 16 human years in the large races.
- At 2 years old Dogs have an equivalent of about 24 human years.
- From then on, we will add 5 human years for each dog year. That is, 3 dog years correspond to 29 human years, 4 dog years correspond to 34 human years, and 5 dog years correspond to 39 human years.
- From 5 years old we will add for each canine year 4 human years in small breeds, 6 human years in medium breeds and 8 human years in large breeds.
Care
We must know that, although a better quality of life does not prevent the aging process, it does delay it. Therefore, improving the quality of all the environmental factors that are in our hands will be essential to make aging a less acute and aggressive stage for our pets.
Below, we list the main precautions that help delay aging in dogs, and thus extend their life expectancy:
- Food: a balanced diet that meets the demands of each life stage will be essential to maintain our pets in good he alth.
- Physical exercise: Similarly, daily physical exercise, according to the needs of each race and age, will help maintain a good he alth, preventing obesity and all diseases associated with it. How much exercise should a dog do a day? Find out the answer here.
- Hygiene: Understanding hygiene not only as grooming our pet (brushing, bathing, etc.) but also as cleanliness of the environment in which it is found.
- Vaccination and deworming schedule: Complying with the vaccination and deworming schedule will prevent a wide variety of infectious and parasitic diseases, some of them serious and even fatal. Do not hesitate to consult the schedule of vaccinations for dogs in this post that we recommend.
- Veterinary check-ups: regular veterinary check-ups will allow any pathological process to be detected in its early stages and treatment to be instituted early, which will improve the prognosis and life expectancy of animals.
Diseases
As you can imagine, diseases are also among the factors that influence the life expectancy of dogs, as they affect their mortality rate. Some pathologies are related to:
- Age: for example, developmental diseases in young dogs or neoplasms in older dogs.
- Sex: like mammary tumors in bitches.
- The breed: like herniated discs in dachshunds.
However, regardless of whether or not there is a predisposition in individuals, diseases will directly affect the longevity of dogs. For this reason, it is essential to provide them with good preventive medicine that allows them to avoid or delay, as far as possible, the appearance of any pathology.
How long does a small dog live?
Small breed dogs, such as the Chihuahua, Poodle, Pomeranian or Yorkshire, live around 12-17 years. However, there are some especially long-lived individuals of small breeds that have come to exceed 20 years of life.
How many years does a medium dog live?
Medium-sized dogs, such as beagles, cocker spaniels, bull terriers or English bulldogs, have a life expectancy of between 10-15 years. That is, they are somewhat less long-lived than small breed dogs.
How many years does a big dog live?
Large dogs such as German Shepherds, Boxers, Labrador Retrievers and Golden Retrievers have a life expectancy 8-12 years In the case of giant breeds, such as the Mastiff, Newfoundland or Great Dane, the life expectancy is reduced to 6-11 years.
Some breeds of dogs and their life expectancy
Although we have already talked in general about the longevity of dogs depending on their breed, in this section we will detail more specifically the life expectancy of some of the best-known dog breeds:
- Beagle: 12-15 years old
- M altese Bichon: 12-15 years old
- Border collie: 12-13 years old
- Boston terrier: 12-15 years old
- Boxer: 9-12 years old
- Bull terrier: 10-14 years old
- French bulldog: 10-12 years old
- English Bulldog: 8-10 years old
- Poodle: 12-15 years old
- Chihuahua: 12-20 years
- Chow chow: 9-12 years old
- Cocker spaniel: 12-15 years old
- Doberman Pinscher: 10-13 years old
- Greyhound: 10-14 years old
- Golden retriever: 10-15 years old
- Great Dane: 6-8 years old
- Labrador retriever: 10-13 years old
- Pyrenean Mastiff: 7-14 years old
- German Shepherd: 9-13 years old
- Pitbull or American bulldog: 8-15 years old
- Pomeranian: 12-16 years old
- Shih-tzu: 10-16 years
- Dachshund: 14-17 years old
- West Highland White terrier: 12-16 years old
- Yorkshire: 13-16 years old
However, you must remember that these data are merely indicativeAs we have explained throughout the article, there are many other factors beyond breed that can affect the life expectancy of dogs. Therefore, we recommend that you take these values only as an approximation.
