Life In Dog Years: Many Pets Living Longer

When Denice Shaughnessy’s wirehaired dachshund Chanel died last month at the age of 21, she was heralded as the world’s oldest dog, according to Guinness World Records.

Now another old dog, one still living, is vying for that title. Max, a terrier mix, is 26 years old, according to his owner, Janelle Derouen of New Iberia, La., although Guinness has yet to certify his status.

And dogs aren’t the only pets living longer. A Sphynx cat, Granpa Rexs Allen of Austin, Texas, was 34 years old when he finally died in 1998.

Dogs like Chanel and Max and cats like Granpa Rexs Allen are outside the norm, but they may be trailing indicators of an increasingly long pet lifespan. Veterinarians say it’s not unusual for some dogs and cats to reach 15 years or more, and they’re seeing more and more pets do so.
“Just as the average life expectancy for people keeps reaching closer to the century mark, we’ll continue to see the same parallels in our pet population,” says Martha Smith, director of veterinary services at Boston’s Animal Rescue League.

The choices we make for our pets can go a long way in affecting their lifespans, say veterinarians. And so can the pet you pick.

Size matters If you want your dog to live a long time, choose a small or medium-size breed. Longevity directly correlates to breed size. Large dogs have shorter lifespans than small or medium-size dogs, and toy breeds tend to have the longest lives of all. As for giant breeds such as Newfoundlands, Saint Bernards, Great Danes and Irish wolfhounds? Well, they don’t have a giant-size lifespan.

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