Dog Vs Human Ages
Is your dog a teenager, a young adult, a senior?
MetPet.com Staff Writer
The common unit of measure to compare dog years to human years is:
 
1 human year = 7 dog years
 
Different breeds of dogs age at vastly different rates so this rule of
thumb only goes so far. Giant dogs like Great Danes and St. Bernards may
have a life expectancy of under 10 years.  Chihuahuas might still be going
strong at 15.  You can think of some dogs as either aging faster or simply
not living as long as others.  In any case, a life that is significantly
shorter than the average human life is one of the difficulties that dog
lovers face.
 
Dog years                 Human equivalent years
 
1                         21
2                         25
5                         40
10                        60
15                        75
20                       100
 
 
 
Alternatively, since dogs reach maturity in about 1 year, that could be
seen as 16 in human terms.  Then add about 7, 5 or 4 years for every year
your dog ages depending on the size of your dog.
 
Giant breeds examples: Great Danes, Mastiffs
Large breeds: Retrievers, Collies
Small breeds: Chihuahuas, Pomeranians
 
A 5 year old giant breed dog would then be:
(5-1) x 7 +16 = 44 in human terms
 
A 5 year old large breed dog would then be:
(5-1) x 5 + 16 = 36 in human terms
 
A 5 year old small breed dog would then be:
(5-1) x 4 + 16 = 32 in human terms
 
                     Human equivalent years
Dog years
                Giant breed Large breed Small
                                        breed
1                   16          16       16
2                   23          21       20
3                   30          26       24
4                   37          31       28
5                   44          36       32
6                   51          41       36
7                   58          46       40
8                   65          51       44
9                   72          56       48
10                  79          61       52
11                  86          66       56
12                  93          71       60
13                 100          76       64
14                              81       68
15                              86       72
16                              91       76
17                              96       80
18                             101       84
19                                       88
20                                       92
21                                       96
22                                      100
 
Specific breeds such as Border Collies and Bulldogs can have shorter life
expectancies than their size would suggest.  This could be because Border
Collies lead hyper active lives and Bulldogs are essentially dwarfed
Mastiffs and share the shorter lives of their ancestors.
 
Beyond genetics, good nutrition, daily exercise, medical care, a warm
family environment and an interesting life all serve to increase the
lifespan of your dog.  Note that the average lifespan of a dog in the US
has doubled in the last several decades.  The basic dog hasn't changed as
much but the care of dogs has changed dramatically for the better.

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