Dog Years to Human Years

People have been asking me what the conversion from dog years to human years really is. I have recently been replying that there is no real formula. It is a flawed, and inaccurate representation of our dogs true age.

I have to admit that not too long ago I was guilty of asking the same question. Some people say it is 7 years for every human year. Others claim it is 15 years for the 1st human year, and then 7 thereafter, but the truth is that dog years just don't add up. At least not in the way we would like them to anyways.

As I became more interested in dogs and began pursuing a career in veterinary medicine I started to research and discover that all breeds have different health risks associated with them. I started to realize that breeds differ so greatly physiologically that I could not in good conscious treat them all as equal.

Some are more sensitive to anesthesia, some might be more prone to heart problems, while others may have a higher likelihood of adverse reactions to combo vaccines.

How could I possibly assign a uniform dog year number or formula that would work for all breeds? It just isn't possible.

They all age at different rates, and have different needs. Some of the breeds can't even mate with each other anymore because the mechanics just aren't in their favor due to differences in size.

The fundamental definition of species has always been that the specimens in question can mate together and produce viable (non-sterile) offspring. We are treading a thin line of speciation when dogs can't even mate without assistance from humans through artificial insemination or C-section.

The bottom line is that dogs life expectancies vary so greatly, and they age so differently that it is impossible to say that a human year equals X or Y number of dog years. It just wouldn't be responsible of us to do so.