10 years for a dog as large as a wolf is quite a long life domesticated or not. Both size of frame and (healthy) weight play into the average expected lifespan of a dog. Marie, have you ever seen a wolf? Do you know how freakin HUGE they are? Like holy hell they are big - oh and scary. Beautiful, but very intimidating. :eek: I didn't realise any of this until the last couple months when I have seen several wolves up north. It's funny how beautiful they are from way up in my big (commercial) truck, and how very intimidating they are when I'm on the ground with them! :eek:

I have lived in close vicinity with them, they thrived very nicely on our herd of cattle.

I still stand by the 12yr average life for domesticated dogs approaching that size

The difference between 10 and 12 years is only 20%, and really not the point of this thread anyway. ;)

Similar-sized to a wolf:
http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_is_th..._span_of_a_dog

I believe my experiences not what wiki says :mrgreen: (another edit, My family has owned and run a dog boarding kennel since I was 5, I have worked for a vet and I have been grooming dogs since '81)

And the comment was
some pushing 10 does not make an average and even my 200lb mastiff made it past that


*edit* Your right this is not what the thread is about. Unfortunately I can't access the whole article on the net because I'm not a Vet but here is part of it
http://canadianveterinarians.net/Sho...ResourceID=554

I'm tired of editing so I'm replying again instead :mrgreen:
I don't usually argue like this but I do think that the otherside sometimes needs to be mentioned for those people who are sitting on the fence regarding raw food diets.

I never knew you to have such a strong opinion. I'm still not sure if it's really you typing this. ;)

IMO, I would rather push ultra grade kibble than raw diets as most people do raw diets incorrectly one way or another anyway. The other side that I think needs to be mentioned is the fact that 99% of pet owners feed their beloved pets disgusting CRAP that absolutely DOES NOT meet a dog's nutritional requirements, and people wonder why their dogs come up with diseases and "genetic" problems. All those people that are sold by commercials and think HUGELY over-priced garbage brands like Iams/Eukanuba, and Hill's Science Diet/Prescription Diet are actually good for their dog have the wool pulled over their eyes. Wake up and smell the fillers.

So I failed the first round of Statistics in university, so I cannot define to you "average" but most people take it to mean "in the middle" or mid-range (even though that is technically different). I did not know someone would take it so literally! I would say 10 years is average for domestic dogs. Some live longer, some shorter, especially when you consider all the "non natural" deaths, in which case wolves would also fall victim to. But we are right here people, its really not what this thread is about, I just wanted to clarify what I meant by AVERAGE. ;)

HAHA is funny. :mrgreen: High quality kibble does not bother me, as long as I am able to know for certian what is going into it, especially when it comes to meats. (how could you support a pet food company that could *possibly* be using euthanized animals from vet clinics?). Even the remote idea of it sends a shiver down my spine.

-Diana

You should see what they put in human grade meats...it's hard to accept much less for our pets imo.

Tell me about it. I reccently pretty much did away with eating meat. I love animals too much to allow them to be treated in such ways, and I also care too much about what I put in my body. I will eat organic & free range meat, and seafood too! I will stop in order to allow my dogs to eat more. :D

I feed my dog Shar Kare brand food chicken and rice,
It had the same ingrediants list as one of the expensive brands, but the expensive brand had beet pulp and Shar kare didnt and first ingredients are all meat and rice,
not the best food but its good and the price is right.
My dog is a true mutt no way to tell his breed at all and he has guts of steel and can eat everything, except he wont eat any vegetable or grain unless its mixed with meat or gravy or the juices.
we give him a carrot and he carries it away and hides it then comes back and wont take anything else from us untill we show him its real food.