How Old is 16 in Dog Years?

Last Updated on February 22, 2023 by Becky Roberts

16 in dog years roughly equals 87 in human years.

This calculation was made for a medium-sized dog (21 to 50 pounds) using the recommendations from the AKC (American Kennel Club).

There are 2 ways of calculating the conversion from human years to dog years. The above result was calculated using the more correct way, we’ll explain what makes the other way incorrect later in this article.

The table below shows dog years and their equivalent to human years, with different columns for different sizes.

Dog's Age in YearsHuman Years (Small Dog)Human Years (Medium Dog)Human Years (Large Dog)
1151515
2242424
3282828
4323232
5363636
6404245
7444750
8485155
9525661
10566066
11606572
12646977
13687482
14727888
15768393
16808799

16 in dog years

Calculating how many human years is 16 in dog years

As mentioned above, there are 2 main ways of calculating dog years to human years and vice versa. There’s a correct way and an incorrect way.

The incorrect formula

The majority of people still believe that one dog year equals 7 dog years. This belief probably started in the 1950s, however this isn’t the best way to calculate it.

Although there’s been a lot of research since then disproving that the ratio is 7-1, people continue to believe the idea. The formula could have been based on the idea that dogs live to about 10 years old and humans up can live to 70, however we don’t know when it started.

So while the 7 to 1 rule is easy to remember and calculate however, it’s sadly incorrect.

The correct way

The proper method to convert human years to dog years is more complicated.

The American Veterinary Medical Association has the following to be said about it:

  • The beginning year of a medium-sized dog’s life is about 15 years for humans.
  • The second year in a dog’s lifespan is equivalent to 9 human years.
  • From that point onwards, every human year equals four or five dog years.

Keep in mind that smaller dogs tend to live longer than bigger dogs. Scientists concluded that every 4.4 pounds of body mass reduced a dog’s life expectancy by about a month.

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Becky Roberts

Becky Roberts

One of Becky's favourite things to do every morning is to browse the top pet-related forums, looking for issues and questions that people have. She then shortlists the most common ones, and turns them into blog posts for Fuzzy Rescue. She's had over 4 cats and 2 dogs over the past decade, so she does know a thing or 2 about raising/training, and more importantly, loving them. She's the only one on our team that doesn't like coffee, but it seems to us she really doesn't need more energy :). We're very fortunate to have her on board as she does most of the heavy listing for the site, outputting an insane amount of content each month. Read More

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