Knowing the real age of dogs is not easy, many people believe that by multiplying each year of the dog by 7, it is possible to know approximately its age. But actually it is more complicated since in their early years they develop faster than when they are adults. The first year of life is approximately equivalent to 15 years in human age, while the second year is equivalent to 9 human years (ie 2 years of a dog would be approximately 24 years of a person).

The age of the animals also depends on the size of the dogs. That is, large dogs develop faster than small ones and their life expectancy is shorter. The large breeds they can live an average of 12 years, considering them already elderly when they reach 8 or 9 years, compared to 16 that a small breed can live. On the other hand, it is considered that small dogs begin to age when they are 11 or 12 years old, medium dogs between 9 and 10 years old, and large dogs from 7 or 8 years old. This also depends on the quality of life that the dog has, a good diet, the hygiene... It is also known that "pure breed" dogs age faster than "mixed" ones.

Fresi, is an example that the small breeds they are longer lasting. As you can see, she is a small-sized mestizo dog that is no less than 17 years old (they would be equivalent to 93 years of a person). If Fresi were a giant breed dog he would be almost 130 years old, it would be practically impossible, therefore, as we told you before, the dog size It greatly influences the age of the dogs.

And as there are always exceptions, we are going to introduce you to the oldest dog in the world, registered in the Guinness Book of Records. His name is Pusuke and he lived 26 years and 9 months. He was born in Sakura (Japan) on April 1, 1985 and died on December 5, 2011. A record! He was also rather medium in size..

But in addition to size, there are other indicators that determine the age of dogs:

• The teeth From the age of 6 or 7, the dog can begin to lose teeth or have inflammation in the gums.

• The hair , the appearance of gray hair usually begins on the muzzle and legs. In addition, the coat becomes finer and is a critical indicator of the aging process.

• The musculature As in men, the muscles lose volume and firmness over the years. This is also a clear sign of the dog's age.

• The conduct , middle-aged and older dogs begin to be slower, less active, and generally more irritable. In addition, they may begin to have different behaviors such as not wanting to go out for a walk, they sleep more hours, they do not know people they know, etc.

You can help yourself to calculate the age of your dog with this infographic, after two years is when the differences between sizes are pronounced:

We hope that this post has been useful to you and that you have a clearer idea of how to calculate the age of dogs. Obviously all the calculations are approximate, but they are quite close to reality.