4 in dog years roughly equals 32 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 Years | Human Years (Small Dog) | Human Years (Medium Dog) | Human Years (Large Dog) |
---|---|---|---|
1 | 15 | 15 | 15 |
2 | 24 | 24 | 24 |
3 | 28 | 28 | 28 |
4 | 32 | 32 | 32 |
5 | 36 | 36 | 36 |
6 | 40 | 42 | 45 |
7 | 44 | 47 | 50 |
8 | 48 | 51 | 55 |
9 | 52 | 56 | 61 |
10 | 56 | 60 | 66 |
11 | 60 | 65 | 72 |
12 | 64 | 69 | 77 |
13 | 68 | 74 | 82 |
14 | 72 | 78 | 88 |
15 | 76 | 83 | 93 |
16 | 80 | 87 | 99 |
Calculating how many human years is 4 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 old way
Many people believe that one dog year equals seven dog years; this assumption probably started in the 1950s, but it’s not the right method of calculating it.
Although there’s been quite a bit of research since then disproving the 7:1 ratio, it seems that people still believe in it. The formula could be based on the belief that dogs live for 10 or so years, and humans live reach 70 years old, but honestly, we’re not quite sure the date it was first introduced.
Therefore, while the 7-1 rule is easy to calculate and remember however, it’s sadly incorrect.
The correct formula
The correct way of converting human years to dog years is more complex.
The American Veterinary Medical Association has the following things to add to it:
- The very first year of a dog’s life equals around 15 human years.
- The second year of a dog’s life is equivalent to 9 human years.
- From that point forward each year of a human 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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