“We are also looking at how various environmental variables, from air pollution to socio-economic status to nearby parks, are associated with health,” he says. They are also now starting to analyze molecular biology data to begin searching for molecular signals of health and disease in dogs. He says they have also found a strong association between feeding frequency and several diseases, but need more information before they can draw any conclusions from that. As we thought about this finding, we realized it might be due to older owners having more available time, either because they are retired, or simply have more flexible work schedules.” “What did surprise us is that older owners have dogs that are more active. “We have seen that among the dogs in our study, older dogs are less active. He says during the past year, Dog Aging Project researchers have been analyzing their first year of data. Daniel, who is also a professor in the Department of Lab Medicine and Pathology, and Department of Biology at the University of Washington School of Medicine, says he realized that we could learn a lot by studying aging in dogs, potentially for both dogs and people. About 40,000 dogs have been enrolled in the study so far.ĭaniel Promislow, principal investigator for the Dog Aging Project, was inspired to study aging in dogs by a 2007 article in the journal Science about the genetics of size in dogs. The community science study collects information about each participating dog from the pet parent and their veterinarian, including information about disease history, activity, diet, cognitive function and more. It aims to identify the biological and environmental factors influencing healthy longevity. This is the idea behind the Dog Aging Project, a nationwide long-term study of health aging in dogs. There’s a need for more research to learn more about aging and longevity in dogs. For instance, a 2013 study by the University of California, Davis found that 13 of the 24 genetic disorders evaluated in the study were prevalent in about the same number of mixed-breed dogs as purebreds. ![]() However, that doesn’t mean mixed breeds will necessarily live longer. But in-breeding and body size tend to play important roles in dog lifespans. She says a variety of factors influence the lifespan of mixed-breed dogs, which is what makes predicting life expectancy difficult. ![]() Louviere, some sources say mixed-breed dogs have an average lifespan of 11 years while others go up to 14 years. Though it’s difficult to predict, says Dr. Dogs with the longest lifespan include smaller breeds, which tend to live longer than large and giant breeds. ![]() But average dog lifespan for a typical medium-sized dog is thought to range between 10 and 13 years. Louviere says dog life expectancy can vary depending on the size and breed of the dog.
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