Savvy Pets, 1/10/20: Here’s Jersey, from Jersey! And how to calculate dogs’ real ages!

My name is Rick and back in 2006, I was in bad shape mentally…..I had checked out after 24 years of living with Type 1 diabetes. My family decided that I needed a dog. We rescued Jersey, but she rescued me. She gave me 7 years of unconditional love and support. Thanks for sharing, Rick … sure looks like a perfect pairing!!!

REMEMBER, I am always looking for stories of you and your pet (dogs, cats, birds, llamas, whatever!). I’ll share these stories every Friday, as long as there is Type 1 diabetes and the pets that help us cope!

New research finds better way of calculating dogs’ real ages (as published by Maria Cohut for MedicalNewsToday.com, 20 November 2019).

You may think you know how old your dog is — how their age translates into human years, roughly. But do you, really? Some researchers think that we have been calculating dogs’ ages wrong this whole time. In a new study paper, they explain why.

Traditionally, people have converted dog years into human years by estimating that 1 dog year equals 7 human years. But this may not be accurate, at all.

The American Veterinary Medical Association argue that aging is not clear cut. They recommend that, instead of converting age, people who live with dogs look for specific signs of physical development and aging in order to better understand their canine companion’s stage of life.

Now, a team of researchers — led by Prof. Trey Ideker, a geneticist at the University of California, San Diego — has developed a more accurate method of calculating a dog’s age and translating it to human years. This method, which the investigators explain in a study paper published online ahead of print at bioRxiv, involves looking at how subtle chemical shifts in the body affect gene expression over time. This process is known as DNA methylation.

Here it is: The formula that the investigators have developed involves determining the natural logarithm of the dog’s age, multiplying this by 16, and adding 31.

Calculating the Natural Logarithm with the Log Button

Enter the number whose logarithm you need to compute and do not round the number. For example, if you must calculate the natural logarithm of 3.777, enter 3.777 on your calculator. Depress the “Log” button to compute the number’s logarithm in base 10.

OK, I’m LOST!!! And I was a math minor in college, way back when!!! Anybody able to help out here?!?!?!?

And hey, this formula doesn’t into account the breed or lifestyle or tummy rubs or long walks! My husband (an engineer) extrapolated … just multiply your dog’s age by 6 … close enough, if it’s important!