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from the even-the-grim-reaper-fears-the-chihuahua dept.
Why do small dogs live longer than big dogs?:
Professor Elgar says the answer to the puzzle of canine lifespans can be found in data that charts "the schedule" of a species' rate of ageing.
This reflects the relationship between the age of an individual and how susceptible it is to dying. So while larger species typically live longer than smaller species, within a species smaller individuals could outlive larger individuals.
And this is particularly important when it come to dogs. A millennia of domestication and breeding means that dog breeds can vary in body size by up to 50 times.
Professor Elgar says that the research comparing size and age-related mortality in dogs shows that larger dogs die younger because they age significantly faster than smaller dogs.
A large study of 74 dog breeds in North America concluded "the driving force behind the trade-off between size and lifespan is apparently a strong positive relationship between size and ageing rate.
"We conclude that large dogs die young mainly because they age quickly."
Professor Elgar says that a larger dog, because of its size, may put more strain on its physiological processes, meaning they tend to wear out more quickly.
"Modern cars generally work well for eight or nine years, and then wear and tear sets in and they start falling apart. The speed with which they deteriorate varies between manufacturers. It's the same with dogs."
Dog morbidity rate is also impacted—as it is for humans—by lifestyle.
Just as young men aged 18 to 25 are more likely to die by misadventure, a working dog like a kelpie or sheepdog is more likely to die in an accident than a schnoodle whose only occupation is to look cute in its favourite chair.
Professor Elgar says the rule of thumb is that "the average lifespan for quite large dogs is about seven years, and 14 years for smaller dogs."
(Score: 3, Interesting) by Grishnakh on Saturday March 14 2020, @02:14AM (2 children)
I know a woman locally whose dogs live to an average age of 6 years. ... She just chose a new puppy of the same breed... WTF?
Meanwhile, we had a large (40kg) mutt who lived almost to his 16th birthday...
This is going to sound pretty horrible I know, but there's another side to this. That woman you know only has to keep that dog for 6 years, whereas when you get another long-lived mutt, you'll be stuck with it for 15-20. Maybe it's not a negative for these people to have short-lived animals, just like a lot of people don't want to keep their car for 20 years.
Somewhat related, sometimes I wonder if marriage should have an expiration date. (If you remember the 90s sci-fi show "Earth 2", they touched on this in one episode.) There's a reason the term "7-year itch" exists, after all. Maybe people don't really want to be stuck with the same friends, partners, pets, etc. for the rest of their lives, even though they think they do.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday March 14 2020, @04:52AM (1 child)
Marriage is not just about mutual attraction between two adults.
It serves to keep people together to raise children and as a legal arrangement for a household. Also, if people aren't committed to each other, who is going to take care of you when you are older or even young but sick or unemployed or what have you? There is a reason why the marriage vow is for richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health, forsaking all others.
(Score: 2) by Grishnakh on Sunday March 15 2020, @12:40AM
That's the usual line we're fed about marriage, but in reality, more than half of them end in divorce. A system with a ~50% failure rate doesn't sound like a good thing to try to build a society upon.
Remember, before the invention of agriculture, humans had no concept of monogamous marriage, and this has also been seen in various hunter-gatherer tribes that persisted into modern times.