Pet foods!

[marie]

I do not believe wild dogs (and I am mainly thinking wolves) are short-lived. A great book called "Decade of the Wolf" following the reintroduction of wolves into Yellowstone details the lives of many of the wolves, and most lived average ages for domesticated dogs.... some even pushing 10.

I missed this comment last night.
10 is not old for a domesticated dog, yes for some breeds like great danes ect but we had a black lab that lived to be 18yrs old and I have a shih-tzu right now who will be 15 in march. You should at least expect 12-14 happy years out of a dog and more often 16 yrs+ is the norm for the smaller breeds

[Diana]

Of course 10 years is not old for a domesticated dog, thats why I said "average". Some dogs reach only 7 years, some dogs can live well into their teens. I am hoping for 15 years out of my dogs (small breed). Wolves in the wild are often killed by rival packs once they start to slow down, but it is not uncommon for them to live past 10, which IMO is pretty damn good, even for domestic dog standards. The point I was trying to make is that thier lifespans are not "short". But alas, we really cannot compare our domesticates to them, since they are but distant relatives.

[Myka]

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. 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!

[marie]

Originally Posted by Myka

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. 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!

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

[Myka]

Originally Posted by marie

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:

Originally Posted by Wikipedia

Great Dane

7 - 10 years

Irish Wolfhound

6 - 7 years

http://wiki.answers.com/Q/What_is_th..._span_of_a_dog

[marie]

Originally Posted by Myka

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 (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

I do not believe wild dogs (and I am mainly thinking wolves) are short-lived. A great book called "Decade of the Wolf" following the reintroduction of wolves into Yellowstone details the lives of many of the wolves, and most lived average ages for domesticated dogs.... some even pushing 10.

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

[marie]

I'm tired of editing so I'm replying again instead
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.