Each additional year of the dog’s life is then multiplied by between 4.3 and 13.4 years, depending on the breed, to find their human age.

The first two years of a small dog’s life is roughly the same as 12.5 human years, while it’s 10.5 for a medium dog, and nine for large dogs.

Small and toy breeds reach seniority around the age of 10.Īccording to the UK Kennel Club, the general guidelines to determine how old a dog is are the following: Large and giant breeds are usually considered to be ‘seniors’ by the time they’re five, while medium-sized dogs won’t reach old age until they’re seven. Larger breeds live shorter lives, so they mature more quickly.

The dog’s size and breed play an important part in their life expectancy, with smaller breeds usually living longer than larger breeds. However, this rule doesn’t always offer reliable results. The formula was likely based on the fact that while most humans get to live until they’re 70, dogs live on average 10 years.

You’ve probably used the following easy-math rule for calculating how old your dog is: multiply the dog age by seven to get their age equivalent in human years. Why the most famous rule to calculate dog years to human years can sometimes be wrong? In this article, we’ll show you the easiest way to convert dog years to human years to find out exactly how old your dog is. But the reality is their life span is not the same as ours and many dogs are already full-blown adults by the time they are two years old. We all wish our canine friends could live as long as us humans do, or even longer if possible. While it’s true that one year for human development is quite different to one year for a dog’s development, the actual number of dog years to human years depends on several factors, such as breed and size. When we’re working out how old a dog is in human years, the popular opinion is to multiply their age by seven.

Dog age chart