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Cited by 36Veterinary Medicine and SurgeryHuman-Animal Interaction StudiesGenetics, Aging, and Longevity in Model Organisms

Exceptional longevity and potential determinants of successful ageing in a cohort of 39 Labrador retrievers: results of a prospective longitudinal study

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Adams, Vicki Jean, Watson, Penny, Carmichael, Stuart, Gerry, Stephen, Penell, Johanna, Morgan, David Mark·2015·Acta Veterinaria Scandinavica
DOI 10.1186/s13028-016-0206-7PMC PMC4863359
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Abstract

BACKGROUND: The aim of this study was to describe the longevity and causes of mortality in 39 (12 males, 27 females) pedigree adult neutered Labrador retrievers with a median age of 6.5 years at the start of the study and kept under similar housing and management conditions. Body condition score was maintained between two and four on a 5-point scale by varying food allowances quarterly. The impact of change in body weight (BW) and body composition on longevity was analysed using linear mixed models with random slopes and intercepts. RESULTS: On 31 July 2014, 10 years after study start, dogs were classified into three lifespan groups: 13 (33 %) Expected (≥9 to ≤12.9 years), 15 (39 %) Long (≥13 to ≤15.5 years) and 11 (28 %) Exceptional (≥15.6 years) with five still alive. Gender and age at neutering were not associated with longevity (P ≥ 0.06). BW increased similarly for all lifespan groups up to age 9, thereafter, from 9 to 13 years, Exceptional dogs gained and Long-lifespan dogs lost weight (P = 0.007). Dual-energy x-ray absorptiometer scans revealed that absolute fat mass increase was slower to age 13 for Long compared with Expected lifespan dogs (P = 0.003) whilst all groups lost a similar amount of absolute lean mass (P > 0.05). Percent fat increase and percent lean loss were slower, whilst the change in fat:lean was smaller, in both the Exceptional and Long lifespan compared with Expected dogs to age 13 (P ≤ 0.02). Total bone mineral density was significantly lower for Expected compared to Exceptional and Long lifespan dogs (P < 0.04). CONCLUSIONS: This study shows that life-long maintenance of lean body mass and attenuated accumulation of body fat were key factors in achieving a longer lifespan. The results suggest that a combination of a high quality plane of nutrition with appropriate husbandry and healthcare are important in obtaining a greater than expected proportion of Labrador retrievers living well beyond that of the expected breed lifespan: 89.7 % (95 % CI 74.8-96.7 %) dogs were alive at 12 years of age and 28.2 % (95 % CI 15.6-45.1 %) reaching an exceptional lifespan of ≥15.6 years.

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  • Increase in body weight through middle age contributes to the prevalence of obesity.

    “Increase in BW through middle age contributes to the prevalence of obesity.46–48”

    From 2021 AAHA Nutrition and Weight Management Guidelines for Dogs and Cats (2021) · cites this paper as [48]

    The Results (Body weight and composition changes; page unavailable) report that body weight increased in all three Labrador retriever lifespan groups from the study’s start to age 9. The paper does not establish that this gain contributed to the prevalence of obesity; its Discussion distinguishes body weight from body fat. (LLM, conf=0.84)

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Cited by

Sorted by citations

Authors
Adams, V. J., Watson, P., Carmichael, S., Gerry, S., Penell, J., & Morgan, D. M.
Affiliations
  • University of Cambridge (GB)
  • University of Surrey (GB)
  • University of Oxford (GB)
Corresponding author
Adams, Vicki Jean
ORCID
Venue
Acta Veterinaria Scandinavica
Publisher
Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Published
2015-12
Volume
58
Issue
1
Pages
29-29
ISSN
  • 0044-605X (ISSN-L)
  • 1751-0147
DOI
10.1186/s13028-016-0206-7
PMC
PMC4863359
OpenAlex
W2383398344
Cited by
36
References
1
Citations by year
2026: 1 · 2025: 4 · 2024: 2 · 2023: 4 · 2022: 6 · 2021: 6 · 2020: 1 · 2019: 4 · 2018: 6 · 2017: 2
FWCI
4.29
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
cc-by
Locations
  • Acta veterinaria Scandinavica (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • Apollo (University of Cambridge) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
Funders
Proctor & Gamble Pet Care, Spectrum Brands
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Veterinary › Small Animals › Veterinary Medicine and Surgery
  • Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Genetics › Human-Animal Interaction Studies
  • Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Aging › Genetics, Aging, and Longevity in Model Organisms
Keywords
successful aging, Labrador Retriever, body composition, lean body mass, fat mass, bone mineral density, weight change, body condition score, plane of nutrition, sex differences, dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry, longitudinal cohort, canine heart disease
MeSH terms
Adipose Tissue, Aging, Animals, Body Composition, Body Weight, Dogs, Female, Longevity, Longitudinal Studies, Male, Prospective Studies, Absorptiometry, Photon, Bone Density

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