Lancashire Heelers live the longest

Small dogs with long snouts often live years longer than large dogs with flat faces, new findings show. Lancashire Heelers have the highest average life expectancy of 15.4 years.

This is followed by Tibetan Spaniels (15.2 years) and miniature dachshunds (14 years), according to a British study published in the journal Scientific Reports on Thursday.

Female dogs (12.7 years) tend to live slightly longer than male dogs (12.4 years), and purebred dogs, contrary to previous studies, live slightly longer than mixed breeds. The study is based on data from more than 500,000 dogs across the UK.

“A medium-sized male dog with a flat face — such as an English bulldog — has nearly three times the risk of living a shorter life than a small, long-faced dog, such as a Miniature Dachshund,” he explained. Kirsten McMillanThe study's author and data manager at a dog charity told AFP.

According to MacMillan, this is the first study to examine the relationship between dogs' life expectancy and factors such as breed, size and facial shape.

With over 150 breeds and crossbreeds, the average life expectancy is 12.5 years. For a French bulldog, for example, the lifespan is only 9.8 years.

(CDU/AFP)