How old is old?
 

At what age is a Yorkshire Terrier classed as geriatric? My yorkie is 8yrs, is she old and what is the average life expectancy?

My vet generally considers dogs seniors at 6 but I have heard of many yorkies living until 19 years old. Smaller dogs age differently then larger dogs.

I'd say anywhere around the 6-8 year range, but they average around 12-15 years in life span, our past male almost made it to 15yrs when he past away and our past female had some sort of health issue that took her at around 12yrs. You'd think around the 6-8 yrs would be more like middle age than geriatric :p lol

chester is almost 12.5 and is still healthy, a 12 year old small dog under 20 lbs is considered 64 in human years, 6 would not be considered geriatric

In my experience over the years with 8 small breed dogs, the last 4 being yorkies. At age 10 y/o they were still going strong, spunky, playing, still getting into mischief, but health issues also started at age 10. My past yorkies lived to be 13, 14 y/o, my last girl had to be put down at 17 y/o. must mention all my yorkies were over standard size, weights ranged from 10 lbs, 2 @ 13 lbs and my last girl was 17 lbs. Just my opinion, I consider my pups reaching their senior years at age 10 y/o, but I would think it depends on the dog and any health issues they may have had earlier in their lives.

Thanks for your advice and information

9 year old loves to play
 

Hi,

I am new here having just acquired my first Yorkie 6 weeks ago. He is 9 years old and wow is he great. I took him in took him in to keep him from going to the pound. It was a matter of being at the right place at the right time. He was going to be sent to the pound and I happened to be there and asked if I could have him and took him home with me. I was not looking for a dog at the time but he is amazing! I was told he was 7 and then when I got proof of rabies shot on him (that is all I asked for) I saw his vet records and saw that he was 8 years and 11 months so now he is 9 years old. My husband didn't believe me that he was 7 when I brought him home. Lol. He loves to play and he loves to cuddle. He settled right in with me to a life of being loved and spoiled. I could not ask for a better dog. I would say he may be 9 but he thinks he is 5 so we won't tell him how old he is. He does love to sleep but that is okay as it fits my lifestyle that while I am on the computer he is curled up next to me. Wonderful dog who I hope I have many wonderful years with. We do enjoy a few nice walks around the yard daily and sometimes around the block and a few romps in the house a couple times a day. He has his own games he plays and I am learning them. I am so addicted to Yorkies though already!

I have almost 15 yo and still very active.

Generally speaking I would look at 8yrs old as starting the senior years for small dogs. This is often the time a lot of vets might change their wellness care to one addressing the ageing dog. The vets might change their blood panel profiles, may suggest diet changes, query you about activity levels, address arthritic changes in their joints, etc.


Needless to say with the large dogs 6yrs is often the benchmark - you look at the breeds average life expectancy and divide by 2 and voila that is the start of middle age.

A small dog with no genetic weakness or defects that is fed a healthy diet and has plenty of exercise should be healthy well past 10 years of age. Our small dogs have lived to 15 and older.

Giving bone and joint supplements after the age of 7 can help keep away things like arthritis and joint weakening.

Larger dogs tend to have a shorter life expectancy according to most vets but genetic background and diet can make a huge difference in the larger dogs as well.

My Heidi was 11 days shy of being 18 yrs. The last 3 1/2 yrs she was in acute kidney failure and on sub-q fluids and meds every day. She had a few very bad episodes but she was alert and happy for the most part the rest of the time. If I had it to do over again I wouldn't change a thing that I did. Until the end my vet said she was a little trooper and not ready to go yet. She let me know when she was though and I was with her through it all.

Our vet told us 8 years as well for when he would start doing "senior" testing and assessments on my Yorkies.

You know one thing I find hard to believe, my tiny Jilly lived till age 13 and never seemed to slow down or act one bit differently than she did at age 2 or 3. She was an amazing dog.