What is the life expectancy for a hunting dogs?

Answer 1

I have had hunting dogs for years: Gordon setters, the biggest of all the setters and frequently referred to as a gun dog or bird dog, also as a black-and-tan. Gordons can expect to live, given appropriate care and exercise and not allowed to become overweight, for more than ten years and up to and over twelve years. There are many other breeds of hunter, including poodles and beagles and so on, and their life expectancy can differ. Roughly ten to twelve years is a close maximum, though. Some breeds have more tendency to put on weight and this will affect their quality of life, increase their susceptibility to disease, and thus affect their longevity. Smaller breeds tend to spend more time indoors - especially in the evening when mealtimes and snacktimes happen! - and this makes it more likely they'll become overfed. If you can't get a bit of a feel of their ribs, you need to rethink their diet. Our last Gordon contracted spinal cancer, but with the best of vet care, and radio- and chemo-therapy, lived a joyful life for another nine months; he died peacefully aged eleven. So, as with people as well as domestic animals, life expectancy can well depend on lifestyle and good health care.