Longevity

[MarketThyme]

Hello, I have a one year old Lab who I want to live healthily for a very long time! Does anyone have experience of having healthy long lived dogs and any recommendations? For example does feeding fresh food including veg / supplements such as salmon oil / lots of exercise / lower end of healthy BMI help most? I want to do right by my gorgeous pup.

I think a lot of it is luck of the draw.

We have had labs.

Our current old lady is now 13.5. She has arthritis in her front feet which I think may be the thing that gets her. She has a small amount in one back leg, but it’s fairly minor. Apart from that she’s very healthy. Still very engaged and enjoys family life. In the last few months she’s really slowed down- walks are now just for a sniff around the village really.

However we have always worked hard to keep her slim (an ongoing battle).

We keep in touch with her breeder. She was part of a litter of 8. She’s one of two still left.

We got her from a ‘good’ breeder with all heath tests etc, and an extensive knowledge of all the dogs in her history. It’s not foolproof obviously but tried to give ourselves the best chance. We were very careful with her exercise as a puppy.

We have her niece who’s almost 10, and still very ‘young’ in her mannerisms and behaviour.

Our previous lab only made it to 5. Again health tested parents, very careful with exercise as a puppy etc. Unfortunately he had a rare issue with his spine (just bad luck apparently), and despite surgery he was in pain so very sadly PTS before his 6th birthday.

We had a pair of Labs together, one lived to 16 and one to 15.
I'm guessing luck but, as I always do with my dogs, I was very careful with their weight. Obviously lots of time spent outdoors but be very, very strict with their food. Don't starve them and choose a food you prefer (dry or make your own from scratch) and stick with it. Don't mix dry and wet food. No treats, no offering food from your own meals especially during eating. Just don't look at her when you handle or consume food, don't feel guilty. You want to see the waist and a well defined natural shape underneath the dog. Don't compare it with other Labs because a lot of them are overweight.
I don't know if it helps, but we always add tinned sardines 2-3 times a week with our dogs' normal food.
My personal theory, which I cannot prove, I don't think throwing a ball is healthy for dogs. To my mind, there is too much repetitive stress on their joints as there is often jumping involved and it's not a natural type of exercise. Do it for a bit of fun but not as a consistent and regular exercise. On the other hand, if you can put up with the smell, I think swimming is great for dogs. There you might need to throw a ball in the water as encouragement.
I'm not a professional, just a dog owner and these are my personally formed opinions.

Agree with @Branster on the ball throwing and swimming. Swimming is great exercise for a lab. Mine both love it.

That's really interesting to hear, I wasn't aware there was an alterative. I'll consider the Worm count. Not sure if I could do the immunity test given the requirements of boarders that vaccinations are up to date, although it sounds ideal if you don't need professional boarders. Always good to hear there are options. I've always wondered if immunity from the annual vaccination lasted longer. Thanks

That is a very interesting study, based on Labs too! Thankyou! My dog may be about to find that his treats get replaced with raw carrots more often!

That's reassuring too. Thanks.

What a great recommendation for a youtube channel - thankyou! I just watched the one with the 2 dogs eating with Andrew narrating like it was a sport. It was very well done :-) I'll be watching more!

Sounds like there's a case for doing it less frequently than the monthly vet recommended / prescribed. schedule I do currently. Or at least not worrying if I forget one month!

Good advice! My dog is to be neutered at 18 months. At first I was horrified when I found out (having rung vet with 8 month old pup ready to book him in for the op and being refused). Now I've read more I can def8nateoy see the health benefits and my dogs behaviour is perfectly manageable un-neutered although I will likely aim to do it before he's 2.

Excellent advice, thankyou. I'm going to look into the plaque off, haven't heard of that before. Thanks.

Sorry to hear about your previous Lab's back condition. Sounds difficult for everyone.
I'm glad to hear your girl is healthy and well other than touch of arthritis in paws.
It's a very valid point you make about luck of the draw in terms of longevity x

All sounds very sensible and evidence based. I've added M+S mackerel in water to my dog's bowl a couple of times, very inexpensive, good for healthy fats. I'll stock up next time Im there and up the frequency to at least weekly. Weight sounds very important. My dog's definately not overweight but he's not one of the leanest dogs either who are probably healthier. A lot to think about. Thankyou!

Thanks everyone for all your comments and experiences. A lot of very valuable experiences and well considered evidence based opinions here. So many very well loved well cared for dogs who've had or are having very long healthy lives. Sending love to anyone who's lost a dog at a young age too which is heartbreaking. As people have commented throughout this thread there is so much down to really bad luck.
So many good suggestions too to keep our dogs as healthy and happy as possible. Thank you all x

I think it runs in parallel with life expectancy in humans. As you say, better nutrition and better medical care are big factors. My Labs have always been slim and very fit, but even so the two previous ones had arthritis in later years. Like humans again. You can't stop bodies wearing out.

Re Andrew Cotter ( sorry for the slight derail) I highly recommend the one from pandemic times when he takes O and M on a walk and comments upon it. It's called The Walk of Shame. So, so funny.

He is a professional sports commentator by the way ( wimblebore, the olympics) . Love his voice. ( although not sport!)

I agree with ball throwing. My collies were obsessed but it took a toll on their joints in the end. Good as occasional play though. Monty Don's retriever, Nigel broke his back twisting and leaping for a ball. He recovered :)

Also huge yes to never feed from the table. Never let them beg for food. They sometimes got plate lickings though afterwards.

When I said upthread about bog standard food - I settled on Burns kibble in the end, which is mid range I think. I hadn't the time or patience to explore raw diet.

I also think about the dog's social and emotional maturity.

I left my younger bitch until she was 4.

If you want more information about the negative effects of ball throwing, the Canine Arthritis Management website is an interesting (horrific!) read. I say the plastic ball flingers are sponsored by Metacam.