Being a pet parent, your worst nightmare is to lose your furry friend. The question “how long will my pet live?” haunts you from your pet’s birth till the time you have to say him or her a goodbye. Death is inevitable, and we simply cannot run from it. However, there are certain ways through which you can make your beloved pet live a healthy and prolonged life. The most pressing question of a Rottweiler’s owner is that “for how long do Rottweilers live?”
How Long Do Rottweilers Live?
A Rottweiler’s average lifespan is of 9 to 10 years. The purebred Rottweilers, unfortunately, do not have a prolonged lifespan and usually live for 7 – 9 years. But there are some exceptional cases where the purebreds’ owners enjoy the companionship of their Rotties for more than ten years.
Rottweiler Lifespan Female
A female Rottweiler, on average, lives longer than male Rottweilers. According to a 2017 study published in BioMedCentral, the overall median longevity among Rottweilers was 9.0 years. But the median female longevity was reported to be 9.5 years, with the precise life expectancy range being 7.8 to 11 years.
Rottweiler Lifespan Male
The median life expectancy of male Rottweilers is 8.7 years, with the exact expectancy being 6.8 to 10.1 years.
Who Are Rottweilers?
Breed Overview
Height: Male: 24 – 27 inches Female: 22 – 25 inches
Weight: Male: 95 – 135 pounds Female: 80 – 100 pounds
Lifespan: Male: 6.8 – 10.1 years Female: 7.8 – 11 years
Coat color: Black and tan, black and rust, black and mahogany
Temperament: Aloof at times, gentle, playful
Suitable for: Families needing a friendly but protective dog
Rottweilers are known to be friendly dogs. They are very calm, loyal, and protective and can prove themselves to be perfect family pets. They are very obedient and have a nature that can be easily trained and looked after. Due to their history, Rottweilers are still used as guard dogs, police dogs, rescue dogs, and guide dogs.
Factors Affecting the Rottweiler Lifespan
Rottweilers indeed have a shorter lifespan as compared to other dog breeds of their size and weight. Different factors impact the Rottweiler’s lifespan. In this article, we will have a look at each of these factors in-depth so you can decide what can be done to extend your beloved Rottweiler’s lifespan. While some factors can be easily handled, such as diet, environment, others can be uncontrollable, e.g., size, health, hormones, genes, sex, and age.
Size
When talking about lifespan, size plays a vital role. Rottweiler falls in the category of large dog breeds. Large dogs, especially tall skinny dogs, tend to age faster than small dogs and can readily develop fatal health conditions. Although Rottweilers may seem powerful, studies reveal that for every 4.4 pounds of your dog’s bodyweight, its lifespan is reduced by a month.
Unfortunate Fact About Large Dogs like Rottweiler!
Large dogs like Rottweiler trade longevity for a bigger size. So, the bigger the size of your dog, the shorter the lifespan.
Health
The accelerated growth of a Rottweiler is considered a drawback because a large-sized dog is more prone to develop health disorders. As they age quite early, Rottweilers are prone to many diseases, such as cancer. Similarly, orthopedic problems, deep-chested physique, and bloating are very common in Rottweilers. Cancer is the most common as it occurs due to abnormal cell growth as a result of the fast aging process. So, a Rottweiler with a plethora of diseases will have a shorter lifespan as compared to a healthy Rottweiler.
Neutering and Spaying
Neutering and spaying play a critical role in Rottweiler’s health and determining its life expectancy. Generally, spaying or neutering dogs at the earliest is recommended by vets, but when it comes to Rottweilers, research suggests otherwise—delaying it is safer.
A study in 2002 showed a correlation between the age for the neutering of Rottweilers and their lifespan. The study elaborated that male and female Rottweilers who are neutered before the age of 1 are more likely to develop osteosarcoma, common in Rottweilers, which is a cancer of bones. So, if a Rottweiler is being spayed at a young age, the chances of his or her having a longer lifespan are greatly reduced.
However, consult your vet about the appropriate time for spaying or neutering.
Genes
Like the overall health of Rottweilers, genes also have a very crucial role to play in determining the lifespan of Rottweilers. In this case, the role of good breeders becomes very important. If a Rottweiler is carefully bred using specimens that have little to no hereditary problems, the produced Rottweiller will be healthier than those resulting from careless breeding.
Environment
Nurturing the environment can add some extra years to your Rottweiler’s lifespan. Good nutrition, efficient exercising, and a healthy diet can make the lifespan of your dog longer and vice versa. Having a healthy and active environment helps you cut down the extra weight of your dog, causing less strain to its heart. That way, you can even prevent diabetes and other health problems.
Gender
Male Rottweilers are larger than female Rottweilers, which is why female Rotties live longer than their male counterparts. A fully grown male Rottweiler weighs around 135 pounds that mean every 4.4 pounds of Rottweiler sheds one month of its’s life expectancy. A female Rottweiler who weighs roughly 100 pounds tends to live longer than the 135-pound male.
How Increase the Lifespan of Your Rottweiler to the Maximum?
We have control over some factors that affect the lifespan of the Rottweilers. Here’s what you can do to help your beautiful furry friend to live longer.
- Daily Exercise: Many of the health issues that reduce the chances of your Rottweiller having a longer lifespan emanates from their obesity. To make sure that your Rottie does not become obese and develop related helath issues, you should make sure that they are getting exercise daily. You can take them out on walks with you or play fetch with them.
- Regular Vet Checkups: From the above discussion, it has become obvious that our Rottweilers are prone to many health issues. Therefore, it is crucial that we regularly take them to vets, root out the possibility of covert health issues, and get optimal treatment. If degenerative diseases like myelopathy and geriatric vestibular syndrome are diagnosed at the earliest and dealt with better, the chances of your Rootweiller living a longer, healthier life increase.
- Delayed Neutering and Spaying: As discussed above, early spaying and neutering increase the risk of bone cancer in Rottweilers. By avoiding or delaying spaying, we can increase the chances of our Rottweillers living a longer and healthier life.
- Vaccinating at Recommended Times: To enhance the life expectancy of our Rottweillers, we should make sure that they get their vaccinations shot at scheduled times. Rottweiler owners are also advised against over-vaccinating their senior dogs—it could be counterproductive.
More so, you can do the following to increase the lifespan of your Rottweiler:
- Provide them with a good and healthy diet
- Fulfill all the nutritional requirements
- Give them high-quality drinking water
- Maintain good hygiene
- Keep them safe from harmful chemicals
Remember, Rottweilers are very friendly and loveable dogs who love to be around their families. Make sure you give them all your time so that they don’t feel lonely, as stress and depression can decrease the life span of Rottweilers—and for that matter, other dogs, too.
