WEBVTT - Is a "Dog Year" Really 7 Years?

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to brain stuff from how stuff Works. Hey, welcome

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<v Speaker 1>to brain stuff. I'm Christian Seger and you may have

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<v Speaker 1>heard that dogs age differently from people. It's the old

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<v Speaker 1>notion of a dog year, right, the idea that one

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<v Speaker 1>year for humans equals about seven years for a pooch.

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<v Speaker 1>But is this true or just some tall tale, ash

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<v Speaker 1>shaggy dog story If you will, well, yes and no,

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<v Speaker 1>and it's mainly no. First, let's talk about aging. Age

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<v Speaker 1>isn't just some hard and fast measurement of chronology. It's

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<v Speaker 1>also a measurement of how time affects our bodies. Animals

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<v Speaker 1>all age, but at different rates. By way of example,

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<v Speaker 1>let's look at this seven year myth. By that logic,

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<v Speaker 1>a fifteen year old dog would be in equivalent years

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<v Speaker 1>a one hundred and five year old person. But why

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<v Speaker 1>do so many dogs live to or past fifteen years

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<v Speaker 1>old and so few people lived to a hundred and

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<v Speaker 1>five It just doesn't add up. And this is because

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<v Speaker 1>we can't make a simple one to one comparison. There's

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<v Speaker 1>no concrete equivalency that applies across the board. First, dogs

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<v Speaker 1>don't all have the same life expectancy, and they don't

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<v Speaker 1>age at the same rate either. Think about it this way.

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<v Speaker 1>A Chihuahua can live to be over fifteen people years old,

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<v Speaker 1>yipping at us the entire time. However, a larger breed,

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<v Speaker 1>like a Great Dane, they have a shorter lifespan on

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<v Speaker 1>the order of seven to eight years. So the size

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<v Speaker 1>of a dog affects its life expectancy, as does its

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<v Speaker 1>breed and expected adult weight. Generally, we can make a

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<v Speaker 1>good guess at a dog's age range based on these factors.

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<v Speaker 1>Back to the rate of aging, So dogs undergo a

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<v Speaker 1>maturation process just like people. A puppy's first year on

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<v Speaker 1>the planet equals about more than a decade of people years,

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<v Speaker 1>but this rule doesn't apply for every year of a

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<v Speaker 1>dog's life Afterward, after about two years on Earth, a

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<v Speaker 1>puppy is a sly mature, able to sexually reproduce, and

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<v Speaker 1>if it were a person, hey, it could buy booze,

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<v Speaker 1>it could vote, and maybe it could register for the draft.

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<v Speaker 1>But in biological terms, dogs also fall victim to the

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<v Speaker 1>ravages of age, just like humans. As a pooch ages,

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<v Speaker 1>she or he may begin to develop arthritis, poor hearing

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<v Speaker 1>or vision, and other ailments that are common in elderly humans.

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<v Speaker 1>And they appear to age more quickly in the early years,

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<v Speaker 1>while they're aging slows in the latter years. But if

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<v Speaker 1>you'd like to gauge your dog's age and life expectancy,

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<v Speaker 1>never fear well. It's true that there's no simple multiplication

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<v Speaker 1>exercise applying to all dogs. You can use handy estimation

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<v Speaker 1>charts to make an educated guess about your pups lifespan.

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<v Speaker 1>Interesting side note, if this whole seven years thing is

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<v Speaker 1>a myth, and and we've pretty much established that it is,

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<v Speaker 1>then where did it come from. In an interview with

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<v Speaker 1>The Wall Street Journal, veterinarian William Fortney speculated that this

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<v Speaker 1>may have originated as a marketing ploy meant to encourage

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<v Speaker 1>pet owners to bring their dogs in for checkups once

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<v Speaker 1>a year. So there you have it. Dogs don't exist

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<v Speaker 1>in some weird rip Van Winkle asque time I Balance,

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<v Speaker 1>and every year for you isn't automatically seven for your

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<v Speaker 1>favorite canine. However, they do age at a different rate,

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<v Speaker 1>and it's important to keep this in mind. Make sure

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<v Speaker 1>you stay up to date on vet visits, vaccinations, and

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<v Speaker 1>field trips. Check out the Brainstuff channel on YouTube and

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<v Speaker 1>for more on this and thousands of other topics, visit

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<v Speaker 1>how stuff works dot com.