Lifespan for dog is tentative depends on many aspects. Study showed that small size has longer life than big dog. It is interesting result to see that small size has ability to live and part of oldest dog breed. Big dog, such as Rottweiler or mastiff might not reach 15 year. However, Chihuahua and poodle are common to reach more than 15 year. Average dog lifespan is between ten and thirteen year.
#1 Australian Cattle Dog
- Hypoallergenic: No
- Life span: 13 – 15 years
- Temperament: Obedient, Loyal, Protective, Energetic, Cautious, Brave
- Height: Male: 18–20 inches (46–51 cm), Female: 17–19 inches (43–48 cm)
- Weight: Male: 33–35 lbs (15–16 kg), Female: 31–35 lbs (14–16 kg)
- Colors: Red, Blue
As mentioned above, average lifespan for dog is between 10 and 13 year. Certain breeds have ability to reach more than 15 years, even 20. One of such breeds is Australian Cattle Dog. This dog is local sub-breed from Australia. People use it as guard and protector. Of course, you can’t expect much from this dog due to small size.
However, wild nature and strong character make this dog is high resilient to work hard. Based on lifespan, this breed is part of oldest dog breed and record showed that the oldest dog was reached 29 years old from Australian Cattle Dog.
#2 Beagle
- Hypoallergenic: No
- Life span: 12 – 15 years
- Temperament: Even Tempered, Intelligent, Excitable, Determined, Amiable, Gentle
- Height: Male: 14–16 inches (36–41 cm), Female: 13–15 inches (33–38 cm)
- Weight: Male: 22–24 lbs (10–11 kg), Female: 20–22 lbs (9–10 kg)
- Colors: Lemon & White, Tri-color, Brown & White, Red & White, White & Tan, Chocolate Tri, Orange & White
Small size doesn’t mean lack of capability and skill. Beagle is small dog with scent hunting ability. People train this dog to recognize certain scent in order to prevent illegal import or goods. For lifespan, this dog is able to reach more than 15 years at good condition.
One factor to determine the oldest dog breed is from health issue. Beagle doesn’t have much health issue which gives advantage to live longer than other. This dog came from more than two thousand years ago but modern Beagle was quite new.
#3 Chihuahua
- Hypoallergenic: No
- Life span: 10 – 18 years
- Origin: Mexico
- Height: 5.9 – 9.1 in.
- Mass: 3.3 – 6.6 lbs
- Temperament: Devoted, Lively, Courageous, Alert, Quick
Small and cute characters are what people see from Chihuahua. It is dog with long lifespan more than fifteen years. Small size makes it easy to keep at hand. This dog is very friendly, active, and energetic to play outdoors. You can let kids to play with Chihuahua without much worry. As part of oldest dog breed lifespan, Chihuahua is your favorite dog at all.
Every breed has different trait and characteristic. One thing in common is lifespan more than average breeds. You can keep them for long period. With proper treatment, dog has more probability to get better life. Genetic and DNA can’t be ignored, so you need to pick dog from excellent ancestor. Check the dog lineage before deciding to keep them. Therefore, the oldest dog breed will get what they mean to be.