US scientists are recruiting 10,000 pet dogs for the largest-ever study of ageing in canines, which they hope will shed light on human longevity too.
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The five-year project will collect data from vet records, DNA samples, gut microbes and information on food and walks.
Five hundred dogs will test a pill that could slow the ageing process.
"What we learn will potentially be good for dogs and has great potential to translate to human health," said project co-director Daniel Promislow of the University of Washington School of Medicine..
For the study, the dogs will live at home and follow their usual routine.
Owners will complete periodic online surveys and take their dogs to the vet once a year, with some extra visits for certain tests. Their welfare will be monitored by a bioethicist and a panel of animal welfare advisers.
The National Institute on Ageing is paying for the $US 23 million project because dogs and humans share the same environment, get the same diseases and dogs' shorter lifespans allow quicker research results, said deputy director, Dr. Marie Bernard.
Leslie Lambert of Parkville, Maryland, enrolled her 11-year-old rescue dog, Oscar, in an early phase.
"I would selfishly like to have him around forever," said the 33-year-old veterinarian. "Unfortunately, he ages much, much faster than I do."
But she's torn by the prospect of an anti-ageing pill because so many abandoned dogs go without care. "Just because we can, should we?"
Compared to farm dogs in the past, today's pampered pooches live longer and get more geriatric diseases, said veterinarian Dr. Kate Creevy, the project's chief scientific officer.
One dog year is roughly equal to seven human years but that varies by breed. Large dogs have shorter lifespans than smaller dogs. A Great Dane's lifespan is about half that of a toy poodle's.
Human devotion to dogs drives projects like this, the scientists said. Owners will gladly fill out surveys, send records and submit a pup's droppings for analysis if they think it will help all dogs live longer, even if it won't help their pet.
"People love dogs," said Promislow, who normally studies ageing in fruit flies. "No one has ever come up to me and said, 'Oh my goodness, I just love fruit flies."'
Australian Associated Press
