The well known old tail tales of 1 dog year is equivalent to 7 human years has just been proven false. A new paper has been released that studied the methylation of canine DNA as a basis for genetic ageing to correlate with human ageing (i.e. epigenetic clock ageing).
The work revealed an algorithm that allows more accurate correlation of a dog's age with a human ageing.
According to the study, dogs at one year of age are effectively 31 years of age of a human, and then a dog's age non-linearly from that point onwards.
The new dog age calculator
So how old is a dog in human years? Equivalent human age = (Ln*dogs age x 16) + 31 (Ln means the 'natural logarithm' on the calculator if you turn the phone sideways).
So… if using your iPhone, open the calculator and turn it on its side - this turns into a scientific calculator! Find the Ln button.
Dog years vs human years
So for a four year old dog, enter 4 then hit the Ln button, then times by 16, then add 31…
= 53 years of age human equivalent! Fascinating.