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Comparison of Dog Ages
by Ron Kurtus (updated 27 November 2022)
Dogs age more rapidly than humans. One year for a dog is equivalent to between five and eight years of human life, depending on the size of the animal.
A dog has different nutritional and health care needs in the various phases of its life. Older dogs suffer from the same ailments as elderly people, such as arthritis and loss of hearing and vision. You can get a good idea of how to take care of your dog and also understand its behavior by examining the comparison of the actual age of your dog and the corresponding age of a human.
The same is true for cats and other animals.
Questions you may have include:
- What are the age phases in a dog?
- What are the age phases in a cat?
- What is the life span of other animals?
This lesson will answer those questions. Animal Health Disclaimer
Ages of dogs
Since dogs can vary from weighing only a few pounds to over 100 pounds, size is a major factor in the animal's longevity. Productive years are when the dogs are able to reproduce.
Also see: Dog Age Calculator - With respect to breed and weight
Age 2-20 pounds 20-50 pounds 50-90 pounds >90 pounds Pup 1-11 months Juvenile Juvenile Juvenile Juvenile 1 year 12 years 12 years 16 years 20 years Productive Years 2 years 19 years 21 years 23 years 26 years 3 years 25 years 25 years 29 years 34 years 4 years 32 years 32 years 35 years 42 years 5 years 35 years 36 years 39 years 50 years 6 years 40 years 42 years 45 years 56 years 7 years 44 years 48 years 50 years 62 years 8 years 48 53 56 68 9 years 53 58 62 74 10 years 57 62 67 80 Middle Age 11 years 63 66 72 86 12 years 67 70 77 93 13 years 70 74 82 101 14 years 73 78 88 108 15 years 76 83 93 115 16 years 80 87 99 123 Elderly 17 years 84 92 104 18 years 88 96 109 19 years 92 101 115 20 years 96 105 123 21 years 99 109 22 years 102 113 23 years 104 117 24 years 107 25 years 109 26 years 112
Ages of cats
See: Comparison of Cat Ages.
Ages of various animals
See: Comparison of Animals Ages.
Summary
Most pets and other animals have a shorter life span that humans. With dogs and cats, a relationship between their age and the equivalent human age has been estimated. As they age, they require different care, as do humans when they age.
Dogs are wonderful companions
Resources and references
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Top-rated books on Caring for an Older Dog
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animal_ages_dogs.htm
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Comparison of Dog Ages