# Why such a short lifespan?



## Mr. Wholesome

i've been reading that the average pit bull lives from 10-12 years and i was wondering what is it exactly that keeps them from living as long as other dogs? I've met and had friends that have had dogs that lived 15+ years (the oldest making it to 19) and i was wondering why pitbulls seem to go out so quickly. If you take care of them and keep them well fed and well conditioned what keeps them from living?


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## Mr. Wholesome

anyone got anything?


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## American_Pit13

Most dogs on average only live between 10-15 years. Dogs that get up older have been well cared for and well maintained thru their life. 

Our breed has a rough time making it to 5 years old just due to the average no good people that own them.


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## performanceknls

the average for a "normal" size APBT is closer to 13-15 yrs. Larger dogs live shorter life spans in general so some bigger APBT's/bullies can have shorter life spans. Small dogs like breeds under 30lbs can live for a really long time, breeds like great Dane's have life spans around 7 years. Most dogs will average 10-13 years and APBT's tend to live longer than most dogs. You can go to several sources to find breed life spans but the one I found most reliable is 13-15. Most APBT's in my house and in my dogs lineage have long life spans of 14-16 years my bigger dogs tend to have spans of 10-12.

So if they live a healthy life and are smaller the chances your dog will live longer increase.


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## MY MIKADO

It is quality care that can help a dog live a longer life. Genetics also plays a roll in the life time of an animal or a person for that matter. I have had dogs that lived into their 20's and others that died at age three. I feed them all the best I could they all got great vet care but they were all rescues. 

I think if you get your dog froma reputable breeder you give it good food, good vet care, properly contain them get them plenty of exercise you should be able to have your dog for 12-15yrs. That is a long time.


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## Howardsperformancek9

My female Zeena lived until she was 17 years old. I ended up putting her to sleep then. If I hadnt, she may have made it to 18. She played ball and was fiery until about 16 1/2years old. So, there is hope that they will live a long time. Most, of the rest of my dogs only lived from 11 years to 14 years old.


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## bullydogla

My Daisy is gonna live forever.


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## Chaos4ever

Howardsperformancek9 said:


> My female Zeena lived until she was 17 years old. I ended up putting her to sleep then. If I hadnt, she may have made it to 18. She played ball and was fiery until about 16 1/2years old. So, there is hope that they will live a long time. Most, of the rest of my dogs only lived from 11 years to 14 years old.


WOW 17 years is amazing lotta time to love


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## performanceknls

Yeah we put down Princess an OFRN, down at 16 yrs old, my poodle at 17, my cockapoo 19, my German bred Doberman at 18 and a few others that lived a while. I think Sharon has a great point that proper care plays a big part as well.


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## boogiebot

i think that an average of 12 years is not too bad at all. the average life expectancy for a human male in north america is 77. if one dog yeah is equal to 7 human years that would make a 12 year old dog 84 in human years. looks like they are doing better than us! lol


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## 9361

Wow and 18 year old Doberman! WOW! I think 10 to 12 years is a pretty good lifespan for a dog. I think the dogs I've had lived to be 12 to 14. Our dalmatian was put down at 6 for health problems.


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## boogiebot

Shes Got Heart said:


> Our dalmatian was put down at 6 for health problems.


that sucks. sorry to hear that.


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## CrustDust

*Curious*

Was looking into this out of curiosity because my friends told me my dogs are living unusually long lives and am pretty shocked that pitbull's average 10-15 yrs. All of my pitbulls have made it to 20+ and I've previously owned 3 and currently have 2. My oldest made it to 23 yrs and they weren't exactly small dogs every one of them is 30kg+, they avoided regular old dog problems like arthritis, no tooth loss or dental problems (I brush their teeth twice a day) and none of them ever started to go blind or deaf . As a side note in case anyone is interested, they live really regular lives, 3 1hr walks a day at least and 3 big meals a day. The food I give them is irregular though, I feed them boiled chicken and beef with stock and vegetable soup containing carrots, potato, celery, tomatoes, parsnips and baked beans. Also as a snack I bake them finger size beef and egg pastry biscuits.
So I dunno why they have all lived so relatively long, only thing I can think that I do that my friends don't is the food (they all have smaller dogs like westies and cocker spaniels).


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## dday

CrustDust said:


> Was looking into this out of curiosity because my friends told me my dogs are living unusually long lives and am pretty shocked that pitbull's average 10-15 yrs. All of my pitbulls have made it to 20+ and I've previously owned 3 and currently have 2. My oldest made it to 23 yrs and they weren't exactly small dogs every one of them is 30kg+, they avoided regular old dog problems like arthritis, no tooth loss or dental problems (I brush their teeth twice a day) and none of them ever started to go blind or deaf . As a side note in case anyone is interested, they live really regular lives, 3 1hr walks a day at least and 3 big meals a day. The food I give them is irregular though, I feed them boiled chicken and beef with stock and vegetable soup containing carrots, potato, celery, tomatoes, parsnips and baked beans. Also as a snack I bake them finger size beef and egg pastry biscuits.
> So I dunno why they have all lived so relatively long, only thing I can think that I do that my friends don't is the food (they all have smaller dogs like westies and cocker spaniels).


This is a very old thread, but I have to say I have NEVER seen a dog the size of an apbt live 23 years, or any dog for that mater! The adba won't even register a pup if the stud was over 12 years old at time of conception. My average apbt's have lived 13 to 14 years if they lived a full life. And I take very good care of my animals. And your saying all your dogs lived 20 to 23 years and none of them ever started loosing their eye site or hearing? Hmmm! Not saying it isn't true but I have never seen it.


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## Just Tap Pits

I know this thread has been resurrected from the dead but chevy red dog lived to be fourteen and pulled until he was 10.


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## sharpieblet

CrustDust said:


> Was looking into this out of curiosity because my friends told me my dogs are living unusually long lives and am pretty shocked that pitbull's average 10-15 yrs. All of my pitbulls have made it to 20+ and I've previously owned 3 and currently have 2. My oldest made it to 23 yrs and they weren't exactly small dogs every one of them is 30kg+, they avoided regular old dog problems like arthritis, no tooth loss or dental problems (I brush their teeth twice a day) and none of them ever started to go blind or deaf . As a side note in case anyone is interested, they live really regular lives, 3 1hr walks a day at least and 3 big meals a day. The food I give them is irregular though, I feed them boiled chicken and beef with stock and vegetable soup containing carrots, potato, celery, tomatoes, parsnips and baked beans. Also as a snack I bake them finger size beef and egg pastry biscuits.
> So I dunno why they have all lived so relatively long, only thing I can think that I do that my friends don't is the food (they all have smaller dogs like westies and cocker spaniels).


find this very hard to believe myself...especially seeing as it's your very first post and all...any pics of the dogs in their old age? surely if you've had a dog that lived for over 2 decades, you'd have pics throughout the lifespan? i'd be interested to see them for sure. just hard to believe.


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## angelbaby

LOL If you think 10-15 year life span is short look at the exotics LMFAO they lucky to make 5 years . Sad , I should not laugh.. Jus saying. 
My brother has a tiny apbt she is maybe 45 lbs and she is atleast 18 years old. Girl is grey and grouchy but still kicking.


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## American_Pit13

sharpieblet said:


> find this very hard to believe myself...especially seeing as it's your very first post and all...any pics of the dogs in their old age? surely if you've had a dog that lived for over 2 decades, you'd have pics throughout the lifespan? i'd be interested to see them for sure. just hard to believe.


23 isn't even the oldest dog. Some have lived up to 29 years.

Let me google that for you

Might want to do your research next time before pretty much calling someone a liar


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## mjstk

Even though this was a dead thread, it still brings up a good question. 

Advancments in veterinary medicine and nutrition, are proving to extend the lives of our pets. Genetics, nutrition, and physical fitness are also important factors in determining an animal's longevity. A dog with a genetic predisposition to live a long healthy life (found by studing the pedigree), have been given optimum nutrition from the womb on, and are exercised regularly (exercise program must involve cardio-vascular workouts), WILL live longer than their overweight, couch-potato counterparts. Also, the "average age" is just that... an average. Some will live longer, some shorter, every individual dog will be different. Keep in mind that these "averages" were also devised 40+ years ago (if not longer) when the life-span of everything was shorter. 

The reason that small dogs live longer than large dogs has to do with the cardio-vascular system. The size of the dog directly corresponds to the amount of strain that is put on the heart (how hard it has to work to circulate the blood through the body). The bigger the dog, the more the strain. A dog's heart rate is (generally) the same regardless of the dog's size. That basically means that the heart of a Great Dane beats at the same speed as a Chihuahua. The blood in the Chi is being circulated and "renewed" much more often than that of the Dane simply because the blood has less distance to travel. The more often the blood is circulated, the slower the tissue and organs the blood supplies deteriorate (cel death). The slower the deterioriation, the longer the dog lives. A healthy cardio-vascular system, strenghened with appropriate exercise, essentially makes the heart's job easier by creating less strain while maintaining the same rate of circulation. A dog with a well conditioned cardio system, will have a slightly slower heart rate than one that is not conditioned. A conditioned dog's heart isn't working as hard to circulate the blood as the non-conditioned one, thus reducing the strain on the heart. Crazy shiz... right?! 

On that note... I have an APBT from an unknown background (I still say they just don't make pits like they used to. Makes you wonder if the breed popularity played a role in this (I'm sure it did.)) that is turning 13 in just a few short hours. She is still going strong and has quite a few good years left in her.


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## dday

American_Pit13 said:


> 23 isn't even the oldest dog. Some have lived up to 29 years.
> 
> Let me google that for you
> 
> Might want to do your research next time before pretty much calling someone a liar


She didn't call the poster a liar, just said had a hard time believing it. I also have a hard time believing it since the oldest recent dog in the world died in 2011 at the age of 26. The 29 year old dog you referred to, "Bluey" died in 1939. The poster indicated they have had 5 apbt's, and all of them have lived over 20 years, with one of them living 23 years with (no hearing or vision loss!) Every one of us that has had these dog for the long term knows that cataracts usually form in the eyes between 10 and 13 years of age. I am no expert by any means, but this claim seems suspect. If it is true, it seems they have found a secret fountain of youth for dogs.
http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/headlines/2011/12/worlds-oldest-dog-dies-at-age-26/


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## sharpieblet

dday said:


> She didn't call the poster a liar, just said had a hard time believing it. I also have a hard time believing it since the oldest recent dog in the world died in 2011 at the age of 26. The 29 year old dog you referred to, "Bluey" died in 1939. The poster indicated they have had 5 apbt's, and all of them have lived over 20 years, with one of them living 23 years with (no hearing or vision loss!) Every one of us that has had these dog for the long term knows that cataracts usually form in the eyes between 10 and 13 years of age. I am no expert by any means, but this claim seems suspect. If it is true, it seems they have found a secret fountain of youth for dogs.
> World's Oldest Dog Dies at Age 26 - ABC News


when did i become a she? lmao. but yea, i said HARD TO BELIEVE, American_Pit, so thanks for giving the smartass remark before clarifying what i said. i'll take it as a misunderstanding.

and i'm not talking oldest living dogs, period, i'm talking oldest living APBT. once again, i never said the person was a liar, i said i found it hard to believe and if it's true i certainly would like to see what a 20+ APBT looks like.


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## American_Pit13

dday said:


> She didn't call the poster a liar, just said had a hard time believing it.


I never said she called them a liar I said PRETTY MUCH.



sharpieblet said:


> when did i become a she? lmao. but yea, i said HARD TO BELIEVE, American_Pit, so thanks for giving the smartass remark before clarifying what i said. i'll take it as a misunderstanding.
> 
> and i'm not talking oldest living dogs, period, i'm talking oldest living APBT. once again, i never said the person was a liar, i said i found it hard to believe and if it's true i certainly would like to see what a 20+ APBT looks like.


The maybe you should just ask rather than repeat that it is hard to believe and you want proof, especially because it is there first post. To me that's just rude.



sharpieblet said:


> find this very hard to believe myself...especially seeing as it's your very first post and all...any pics of the dogs in their old age? surely if you've had a dog that lived for over 2 decades, you'd have pics throughout the lifespan? i'd be interested to see them for sure. just hard to believe.


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## sharpieblet

American_Pit13 said:


> I never said she called them a liar I said PRETTY MUCH.
> 
> The maybe you should just ask rather than repeat that it is hard to believe and you want proof, especially because it is there first post. To me that's just rude.


it's an internet forum, not a face to face chat in real life. it's not like i came in and said 'OP you're a freaking liar, pics or get out'. what YOU see as rude may not be to a lot of other people.

edit: we can agree to just disagree on the subject, i'm not here to get in pointless arguments over the internet, just here to learn and socialize.


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## dday

sharpieblet said:


> when did i become a she? lmao. but yea, i said HARD TO BELIEVE, American_Pit, so thanks for giving the smartass remark before clarifying what i said. i'll take it as a misunderstanding.
> 
> and i'm not talking oldest living dogs, period, i'm talking oldest living APBT. once again, i never said the person was a liar, i said i found it hard to believe and if it's true i certainly would like to see what a 20+ APBT looks like.


Sorry didn't mean to assume.


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## sharpieblet

dday said:


> Sorry didn't mean to assume.


no worries, it's just the internet after all lol


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## E Diggy

I've always read that average life span for an APBT is 13-15 years, and that sounds about right considering my dogs' life spans. The bigger the breed, typically means, the shorter the life too. I did have a 120 lb Shepherd/Lab mix that lived to 15 though...


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## KSerrato

Idk. Our first family dog was a Red Nose named Tinkerbelle my mom rescued her as a pup and gave her to me when I was 6 months old. Tink was my best playmate and in all my childhood and teenage photos. Tink died the year I graduated college at the ripe age of 21. The last two years of her life she was primarily blind but still very feisty. Only the last two weeks of her life did she truly show her age. I now have a 2 year old blue and a rescued 9 year old pit-mix and I greedily and somewhat foolishly hope to have just as long with them. I hope they can protect my kids the way she did me. It was very evident from the start to the finish I was her pup and not vis-versa.


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## pookie!

I find it odd the people think that life span is short.. most dogs are lucky to live that long and imo the APBT is one of the longer lived dogs out there, mostly due to genetics imo.

This dog in my picture is 15 years old, the average age for most APBT to live to from what Ive seen. 









Giroux' CH Booger ROM at 14 years old, he lived to be 15 if I am not mistaken









Most make it to around 15 and even at that age they dont really slow down at all lol


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## Black Rabbit

Awww I love that pic Pookie. Was that Tea?


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## pookie!

kg420 said:


> Awww I love that pic Pookie. Was that Tea?


No that was actually her sire, Sweet Pea. She was a spitting image of him though thats for sure lol


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## Firehazard

resurrected! ....... 

15yrs is the avg tops some a lil longer for these bulldogs and I too consider that a good life for dogs who live so hard and fast. 

As for dogs who live long, many times I seen or hear of mixbreed dogs living a long time or breeds of dogs made up of alot of different dogs.


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## Black Rabbit

Dang they did look a lot a like, totally fooled me


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## Rockyshelper

My Rockyboy is nine yo and looks 5 but he's been given an unusual amount of tlc from his humans. I really do think that he knows that he was rescued from a bad situation (dog fight breeders) and it's reflected in his happy loving disposition!!


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## mrcmblr

IT IS the food!!! Commercial dog food is killing all our dogs slowly, but home-brewed, spice and salt-free dog food (no onion, no garlic, no raisins, no chocolate) really extends the dog's life!!! I had a spaniel live to 18 and a German shepherd to 17.


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## Kenaii

mrcmblr said:


> IT IS the food!!! Commercial dog food is killing all our dogs slowly, but home-brewed, spice and salt-free dog food (no onion, no garlic, no raisins, no chocolate) really extends the dog's life!!! I had a spaniel live to 18 and a German shepherd to 17.


lol I guarantee you, there's no chocolate in any commercial dog food.

Good feed is important, but I don't think it shortens a dog's life significantly. Bad genetics is usually the reason a dog dies young.

Breeds like Great Danes, English Bulldogs, Chow Chows, Basset Hounds, Neapolitan Mastiffs, Bloodhounds and Shar Peis usually don't live long because they're prone to so many health problems.

Meanwhile breeds like Australian Shepherds, APBTs, Jack Russells and Australian Cattle Dogs live relatively long lives, because they don't have as many health issues.


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