by There are exceptions to those general trends, and the findings might not apply to dogs outside Britain, where breeding practices (and gene pools) may be different, the researchers noted.
More research will be needed to determine why some breeds have shorter lifespans than others. Some breeds are genetically predisposed to serious health problems, but differences in behavior, lifestyle, diet, environment, or other breed-related factors could also play a role in shortening the lifespan of some dogs. , the experts said.
“Now that we have identified these populations that are at risk of premature death, we can start to investigate why,” said Kirsten McMillan, author of the new study and data manager at Dogs Trust, a dog welfare charity in Britain. that she led the investigation. “This gives us the opportunity to improve the lives of our dogs.”
The study is based on a database of 584,734 British dogs, which researchers compiled from breed registries, pet insurance companies, veterinary companies and other sources. The scientists recognized that these types of registries, which can be prone to various biases, are not necessarily representative of the general dog population in Great Britain.
But Dr. Audrey Ruple, a veterinary epidemiologist at Virginia Tech who was not involved in the new study, said the researchers’ use of so many different data sources was one of the study’s strengths. “I think this is a fantastic approach,” she said.
Most of the dogs were purebred and represented one of 155 breeds; the rest were combined into a single mestizo category. The researchers classified each breed’s overall body size as small, medium or large and its head shape as flat-faced, medium-sized or long-faced.
Across all dogs, the average lifespan was 12.5 years, the researchers found, but the average lifespan varied “quite dramatically” between breeds, Dr. McMillan said. Lancashire Heelers, a breed of small sheepdogs, were Methuselah canines and lived an average of 15.4 years. He much larger Caucasian sheepdogs, however, had an average life expectancy of only 5.4 years.
