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HOW LONG DO DOGS LIVE? THE LIFE EXPECTANCY OF POPULAR BREEDS

HOW LONG DO DOGS LIVE? THE LIFE EXPECTANCY OF POPULAR BREEDS

Dogs are the best companions of humans. Even your best friends won’t last as long as your dog will, and will stay by your side no matter what. Dogs are known for their unconditional love and loyalty to their human companions, and this bond is stronger than any friendship on the planet.

There are many breeds of dogs, and the life expectancy of the dogs greatly depends on their breed. Dogs can be huge, fluffy, and cute, but believe me, Teacup Yorkie is the cutest dog breed, which literally is the size of the teacup, how cute is that!

How long will my dog live? This is the saddest question anyone has ever asked about their lovely companions. There is no definite answer to how long will a dog lives, but there are certain life expectancies, which gives us an idea of how long can a dog live.

Although no human would want to say goodbye to their loveliest companion, the reality is very cruel and inevitable. The dog’s life is way shorter than the life of a human so, it is very much certain that you will have to say goodbye to your dog at some point in your life, so better be prepared for it.

Which breeds of dogs live a longer life?

Science has proved that large-sized animals tend to live more. Take the whales for example; their life expectancy is between 20 years to 100 years. The same goes for large-sized land animals like elephants, they tend to live longer than small animals.

However, in the case of dogs, everything is the opposite; small dogs tend to live more lifespan than large dogs. And this difference in the life expectancy of the short dogs and the larger dogs can be of several years.

Scientists have not been able to rule out the exact reason behind this entire scenario, but they have made certain assumptions. The larger breeds of dogs tend to develop diseases at a faster rate as compared to the smaller breeds.

One more reason that is associated with the short life expectancy of large dogs is that large dogs grow at a faster rate than they are small puppies. This fast acceleration in their growth raises the chances of irregular cell growth which might lead to diseases like cancer.

Although the exact life or life expectancy of a particular dog cannot be calculated, the assumptions about dog lives of different breeds are;

Life Expectancy of Small Dogs

The approximate life span of the small breeds of dog’s lies between ten to fifteen years, and some of the small breeds even make it up to eighteen years, but most of the breeds have a life expectancy of up to fifteen years.

Smart breeds of dogs are the best options for people who want to stay with their cute little companions for several years. Dogs are the best company a man can have, they love their human so much, and just want a little time out of your routine, while entertaining you all the way around.

Although small dogs have a relatively longer lifespan than any other breed, there is an exception here; French Mastiff is a small dog that lives for five to six years only. Researchers believe that its short lifespan is because of its susceptibility to cardio problems as well as breathing issues. The cutest dog breeds are therefore, the long-lasting companions!

Life Expectancy of Medium Dogs

In the category of medium dogs, both the active medium-sized dogs and rather small companions come together. The standard life expectancy of medium-sized dogs is ten to thirteen years. However, it generally varies in the case of the small breeds, but it’s hard to tell the exact lifespan of the small dogs that are categorized under medium-sized dogs.

Life Expectancy of large Dogs

The large dogs are further classified into giant dogs and large dogs. The life expectancy of the large dog is slightly higher than that of the giant dog. So far, we have seen that the size of the dog increases the average life expectancy decreases.

The average lifespan of the large dogs is ten to twelve years; however, the average life expectancy of the giant breeds is eight to ten years. Dog breeds like Retrievers, Labradors, and German Shepherds come under the category of large dogs with a life expectancy of ten to twelve years.

What is a Dog year and how is it different from Human years?

There is a common misconception when it comes to converting the dog years into human years because people usually think that one dog year is equivalent to six or seven human years, which is totally a wrong way of calculating the age of the dogs.

The ageing, lifespan, and development of dogs is different from that of humans. Dogs undergo a lot of developmental processes in the early stages of their life, it wouldn’t be wrong to say that a puppy’s 1-year development is equivalent to humans’ 15 years of development.

Common Causes of Early deaths in Dogs

The average lifespan of the dogs might be between ten to twelve years, but certain ailments and diseases can bring this life expectancy down and your dog might die at any time due to these ailments.

If your dog dies in the first two to three years of his life, it means ha had gone through some trauma or very serious medical conditions which can be congenital or may occur due to some traumatic events after birth like infectious diseases, or cancer.

Cancer has proved to be a widely occurring disease in large breeds of dogs, and so far, no reason has come to the surface. The larger dogs are more affected by cancer than the small dogs. The dog breed that is most susceptible to cancer is Golden Retriever, this large dog breed has had the most cases of cancer, and to date, scientists have not been able to know the main cause behind it.