The “Seven-Year Rule” Underestimates
We are all familiar with the “Seven-Year Rule” to estimate our dog’s age in human years: multiply their actual age by 7. Well, it turns out this was an underestimate for most of a dog’s lifespan. Researchers have studied dogs’ DNA age markers and compared the rate of change to that of humans to determine a much more accurate way to calculate your dog’s age in human equivalent years.
To do so, all you need to do is to multiply the natural logarithm of his / her age in years by 16 and then add 31.
So, How Old Is Your Dog Actually?
To save you the trouble of running the calculation yourself, we are including a graph from the source article that does the calculation for you. In it we have added a graph of the Seven-Year Rule so that you can see the difference between the new, more accurate calculation and the Seven-Year Rule.
Dog Age Based On New Calculation Vs. Seven-Year Rule
(In Human Equivalent Years)
Your Dog Is Probably Older Than You Think He/She Is…
As can be seen, until about the (dog) age of 10, dogs are OLDER than we thought… The good news is that after about 10 years old, they are actually YOUNGER than we thought under the seven-year rule!
Either way, the moral of the story is clear; life is short for all of us. So, make sure to not only spoil your furry loved ones but also give them high-quality treats that support health and wellbeing so that they can maximize their health span.
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