Caring For a Seventeen Year Old Dog

When a dog reaches 17 years of age, they are very old in terms of human years. There are different opinions as to how it would be in "people time", but by all accounts a dog is well over 90 years of age, relative to humans when they reach seventeen. At that time there will be special care the owner will have to undertake for the dog.

Just like with people, the older a canine becomes, the less able they are to control their bodily functions on time. They don't ever seem to "leak" as some humans do, but they do have much more urgency. In many cases where an animal had been well house broke for years before and never messed in the home, as they become much older, they will have issues sometimes with holding it. There will be times older dogs will have mistakes and end up dirtying the house; that is just one fact for owning an older pet.

Another thing to remember for older dogs is that their teeth are not as good as they used to be. Be very careful about giving them larger pieces of meat or other chunks of food which they used to chew up with ease. As they age, they run a higher risk of choking on it; their teeth simply are not as good as they were when the dog was younger.

Older canines need a lot of sleep. You will notice as your pet increases in age that the number of hours he or she spends sleeping greatly increases. It is very important for their health that you, as the owner, make sure that they are not interrupted and that they are allowed to sleep all they need too.

Senior pets still need exercise too. But you have to be very careful with them. Although they are old, many of them still believe they are young puppies! During play outside they can become excited and end up hurting themselves. If your older friend is this way, you must monitor them carefully and not allow them to become too active where they end up hurting themselves. Especially watch them when they are playing with younger and stronger dogs. Even without meaning to, the young dog can accidently hurt the older dog quite easily.

The rewards for owning a dog their whole life are tremendous. Nothing brings more joy than following and being their friend throughout their life. But remember that there are additional responsibilities that come with age as your pet gains in years.

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