Researchers at the Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences have published findings suggesting that managing multiple chronic health conditions together is critical for extending canine lifespans. The study, conducted by the Dog Aging Project, analyzed health data from more than 50,000 dogs to understand how various diseases compound their effects on aging and survival.
The results, published in GeroScience, show that dogs with five or more chronic diseases are more than twice as likely to die as dogs living with only one diagnosed condition. This increased risk applies regardless of the dog's age or size. The findings indicate that chronic diseases interact in ways that make their combined effects more harmful than each condition alone.
Dr. Kate Creevy, chief veterinary officer for the Dog Aging Project and a professor in the VMBS Department of Small Animal Clinical Sciences, explained that this phenomenon is known as multimorbidity.
She noted that while it is well-established in human medicine that being sick with multiple conditions is frequently more damaging to health than simply adding up the effects of two different diseases, the team wanted to confirm if the same pattern holds true for dogs.
The research team compared the health histories of dogs that had died with those that were still living. They accounted for differences in age at enrollment and the length of time each dog participated in the project. The analysis confirmed that dogs accumulate more chronic conditions as they age, and these conditions can become intertwined.
For example, a dog with osteoarthritis may become less active and gain weight, which in turn increases the risk of developing osteoarthritis.
