This is our standard Longevity Plan for Dogs, it is not breed-specific but is designed to help you, their human companion, provide a long and healthy life. This builds upon years of research and earlier models of canine health to provide a much more thorough and in-depth plan for your dog’s life to be as long and happy as possible.
1. Find a good veterinarian and make sure you get your dog their shots and annual checkups.
2. Make sure you give your dog heartworm and flea/tick preventatives every month.
3. Feed your dog a healthy diet that can include kibble but also might include canned toppers, cooked meat, fruits, and vegetables.
4. Train your dog to allow you to brush their teeth and strive for at least once per month cleanings while using treats like Greenies that clean teeth in between. Avoid dental cleanings at your veterinarian as much as possible since they put them under anesthesia and the trauma may lead to other health complications.
5. Fitness – Walk your dog at least once per day for at least a few city blocks in your neighborhood.
6. Fitness – Play with your dog at least once per week, no matter how old.
7. If your dog starts showing signs of aging such as joint pain, arthritis, deafness, or other issues try using red light therapy (typically around age 8 to 10) to alleviate or reverse these.
8. Become your dog’s advocate. At your annual or other veterinary appointments make sure you ask them about potential supplements to help your dog age more gracefully and make sure you always ask if there are any breed-specific issues you might be about to face with your dog due to their age.
9. Do not leave your dog outside in extremely cold or hot temperatures for too long. If it gets super hot in the summer time where you live, then walk them in early morning or early evening. If it gets super cold make sure they have a coat if shorthair or a shirt/sweater if long hair and spend little time outdoors (does not apply to dogs breed for artic conditions such as Huskies).
10. Train your dog early to take medications or supplements via a pill shooter. This will avoid issues later on in life.
11. If your dog starts having issues on tile or other smooth flooring surfaces find quality footwear as soon as possible to help them grip when they walk and avoid heart issues.
Extras:
1. Have more than 1 veterinarian ready for your canine buddy. You should have a primary care veterinarian that you take your dog to frequently, a backup general practice veterinarian just in case your normal clinic is booked up, and a veterinary emergency room. It is ok if your main vet is not nearby, however, you might want the backup and er to be as close as possible. Having a nearby vet clinic might come in useful.
2. Subscribe to the Canine Longevity Newsletter to learn about cutting edge research, treatments, and more as longevity science progresses. If you’re a dog parent this information might become useful when discussing life threatening illnesses with your veterinarian, if you’re a veterinarian this might come in helpful when giving your human clients options.
3. When prescribed any medication make sure you always ask about the impact of long-term use and if there are any major issues to be concerned about or any alternatives to try. You should also be wary of the interactions between multiple drugs and the long-term effects. For example long-term use of Prednisone might lead to muscle wasting, make sure your veterinarian gives you specific timeframes not just “long term”, have them nail this down to weeks / months / years so you have practical expectations.
4. If your veterinarian diagnoses your dog with a non-cancer issue and drugs to solve the problem, you might seek a second opinion from an integrated veterinarian.
5. Pain, muscle, and joint issues might be solvable or treatable without medication by alternative methods such as acupuncture, CBD oils, and chiropractic treatment. Avoiding extensive use of painkillers as long as possible is likely to help your dog live a healthier and happier life.
6. Adopt Don’t Shop – Not all breeders are bad, however, puppy mills often end up selling dogs that have major health complications which will make it difficult to impossible to give them a long and healthy life. Many dogs come out of these low quality breeders with Dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM), Pulmonic Stenosis, Heart murmurs (Mitral Valve Disease), Diabetes, Various Respiratory issues, Hip Dysplasia, Elbow Dysplasia, Knee Dysplasia, Pneumonia, Intestinal Parasites, Mange, Blindness, Cherry Eye, Cataracts, and Infectious diseases such as Distemper and Parvovirus.
7. Get a Genetic Test – Knowing your dogs actual breed composition might help you plan ahead for breed-specific health problems enabling you to make those issues less impactful, take faster action when they arise, or eliminate them all together.
8. Use Gene Therapy – Most gene therapies for canines are still in pre-clinical or clinical trial stages. As these become more common over the next 5 to 10 years it could help your canine friend avoid major issues like heart failure due to Mitral Valve Disease, Diabetes, Myotubular Myopathy (MTM aka Muscle-Wasting Disease), Muscular Dystrophy, and Hemophilia A. Make sure you talk to your veterinarian about these options.
9. Installing a new floor or moving to a new home with a different floor could prove cumbersome to older dogs. They might walk just fine on the old floor and struggle with the new tile floor. That is because dogs use their toe nails and lightly grip as they walk. Losing that grip could cause major issues if the floor is too slick, especially for dogs over the age of 10. When this happens an immediate remedy might be to lay out runners, rugs, dog beds, etc.. for your dog to walk on – however – dogs being dogs they are unlikely to stay in the lanes you create and a longer term solution might be either shoes/boots or toenail grips. Unfortunately, every canine is different here and it is hard to know which type of footwear will best suit your dog. Dogs who slip and slide on floors my experience increased stress on their heart which could cause life limiting complications later on or more quickly if they have a pre-existing heart condition.
10. Be prepared for your dog’s aging – While there are a lot of new options available online and not in local stores for canine longevity, unfortunately many of them can take days or weeks to ship to your home without express shipping options. Try and order things you might need ahead of time so you have them if/when the need arises. For example Golden Retrievers are bound to have hip issues, so purchasing a read light therapy lamp / device and having it on hand might be a good idea.