How Long Will My Dog Live?
The answer depends on a lot of things. Most dogs will not live much past 15 but there are exceptions to every rule. Longevity has more to do with good food, good water, good exercise and a happy life than genetics. Stress is what shortens life. Stress is illness, toxins in food, pollution, injury etc. I’ve known mini doxies that didn’t see 5 and some that were 13. Statistics are just numbers.
Anyime you delve into the “mini” or “teacup” world you are typically straying away from the breed standard. Some breeders try to get these stunted dogs on purpose and charge extra for this process. Teacups and minis are typically more prone to health issues than the breed standard purebreds, in that to get them to reproduce in the mini state, some (not always) questionable breeding practices are taken. I’m not a fan of minis or teacup anything because of this..tumors, growth problems and dwarfism issues can harm the health of the dog and quality of life. So, yes, there is a good chance your mini wont live as long as a dog of the same breed fitting the breed standard. But who knows, I had a friend with a runt aka teacup chihuahua that lived to the ripe old age of 14. So keeping it healthy and feeding it right should help immenselsy.
