What Is The Average Lifespan Of A Pitbull

The pitbulls lifespan varies on a wide variety of environmental factors, and genetics. Their age varies on average from anywhere to 8-16 years.  In rare cases they have lived over 20 years and I have seen some of the bigger pitbulls live less than 5 years old. If you are interested in extending your best friend’s life it is very possible with proper exercise and nutrition. I especially was wanting to write this articles because once you have a dog by your side for 10 years you want to do everything in your power to make him by your side as long as you possibly can. If you have any tips that has helped your pitbull live a very long and happy life please email me because I would love to share it with my readers.

Nutrition

Nutrition is a key factor into the lifespan of any breed. A perfect diet for every breed is different and really depends on what kind of activities your dog participates in. Pitbulls need a high protein diet and low grains with meat as the main ingredient. Raw meats such as chicken and beef are two of the best nutritional meats that you will be able to find on the market. Many of the generic dog foods today don’t have the necessary ingredients for a proper diet. The reason for this is because when you go buy regular dog food from Walmart their #1 concern is producing as much quantity as they possibly can. When you buy some of the more higher end dog foods that have more natural ingredients like meat, your dog can naturally digest these better than cheaper dog foods that have a lot more filler products like corn and starches processed in them. Which if you just eat McDonald’s compared to someone who eats organic your lifespan will become way shorter but more importantly your quality of life will become much worst overtime and this is exactly how it is for your dog. I would highly recommend if you are on a budget and want to feed the cheaper dog food to still replace your dogs lack of nutritional value with a vitamin that is specially made for your dog. Visit www.pitbullsupply.com they have wonderful vitamins that will enhance your generic brand of dog food and will help your dog get the nutrition they require to live a long happy life.  Also feeding a healthy diet helps reduce obesity and other life threatening diseases such as hip dysplasia, heart disease, and arthritis, which raise lifespan expectancy.

• Hip Dysplasia

Hip Dysplasia is a the irregular construction of the hip socket. In serious cases it can cause crippling and major arthritis. It’s a genetic disease that is heavily influenced by environmental factors. Hip dysplasia is the most common skeletal disease in dogs. Proper diet and obtaining the necessary nutrients with regular exercise hip dysplasia can be postponed and the symptoms can be minimized. A product that I would highly recommend to help prevent hip dysplsia is called Suregrow 100 the reason I love this product so much as a breeder is because it supplements the lack of nutrition that a dog gets from their food and this helps the hips fully develop. I start giving my puppies this at 6 to 8 weeks old and over the years I have noticed this helps a ton in how your dogs hips fully develop while helping your puppies overall bone structure develop. To see the results of this product you will have to give it to your puppy before 16 weeks old and give it to them everyday because the first year is when the puppy does all of its growing so this is especially helpful when the puppy is rapidly growing early on.

• Heart Disease

Pitbulls in rare cases are born with heart issues usually heart disease develops with age. Poor diet and obesity speed up the symptoms and forthcoming of the disease.  Prolonged heart disease can results in heart attacks and the destruction of the heart. The best way to prevent this is from exercising your dogs every day and feeding them good quality food it really is that simple but most never do it because it takes a lot of time but most of all most people struggle with being consistent with something ever day.

Exercise

Being one of the most world renowned “working” breeds. The pitbulls drive for work is something different than most breeds. Regular exercise is an essential for a healthy lifestyle. From just taking a walk in the park, to pulling thousands of pounds to climbing over 10 feet on  a vertical wall, swimming, hiking, or running obstacles. All you need to do is get out and get active with your dog. Exercising your dog on a regular basis can also help prevent your dog from becoming overly aggressive  because than he is able to channel all of his energy into something positive instead of  something negative like barking, biting and chewing up stuff around your house.

Weight Pulling

One of the forms of exercise that has rapidly gained popularity recently is Weight Pulling. Weight pulling has been around for centuries. Many of the game bred pitbulls live and die for this type of exercise. The top registries perform routine weight pulling competitions. (UKC, ADBA,  BBCR, USBR, IWPA, ETC.)  I highly recommend weight pulling for any dog. If you are going to do heavy weights I would recommend taking time to research and seek information from an experienced individual. Chevy Red dog is one of strongest weight pulling dogs in  history pulling over 12,000 pounds. His blood runs through my kennel being the great grand father to my female Lily the Lion. 

No time to Walk your pit?

You have the big problem of not having enough time? You’re a responsible pet owner and want the best for your buddy. Running your pitbull on a treadmill may be a way to get that needed exercise without the hefty time investment. It’s a lot safer than most people’s original judgment. I also would recommend in trying a flirt pole or any of the different exercise equipment made for the pitbull breed

Genetics & Bloodline

Bloodlines throw different longevity of lifespan. A breeder that focuses on breeding healthy dogs is where you want to buy your dog. The best way is to look at the production and lifestyles of the dog. There isn’t one bloodline that lives longer than another. It’s more based on a breeder to breeder aspect. Health testing and veterinary examinations are a great to tell of genetic defects that could produce dogs with lower life spans.

Conclusion

To sum it all up the best way to get all the most valuable years out of your best friend is purchase a health tested dog, with proven healthy siblings and parents. Regular exercise like walks, weight pulling, agility courses, swimming and hiking (i.e). Diet plays a key rule into getting the extra years and making those years count. Expanding & Improving the life of your best friend is possible if you take these necessary steps.