Determining Dog's Age

[EskieDeb]

We adopted an eskie this week and we are having a hard time determining her age. We are planning on taking her to the vet soon, to get a vet/dog relationship established. She is otherwise healthy.  We just have no clue how old she is. 

She is spunky, loves to play, very active, not overweight.. however she seems so "trained." Whoever her previous owners were, definitely spent some time training her. She has excellent manners. She just seems "older."   

She has white eye lashes. Is this normal for younger eskies to have white eye lashes? I'm knew to the breed and the only dogs I have ever seen with white eye lashes before are senior dogs. 

She also seems to have "thinning" around her lips and nose.  You can see a lot of black skin showing through.  She is not "losing hair," but it looks receded...like I've seen on other dogs that I have had that were older.

Her teeth look great! Not much tartar, not much grinding down...I'm going to start brushing them as soon as I'm comfortable putting my hand into her mouth....which I really think she'd let me do.

She is a great dog, sits still in the bathtub so that I could bathe her....   She sat still so I could blow dry her hair.  She sits still while I brush her hair and try to get some mattes out that she has.

This dog has quickly become my best friend.  I have chronic health issues (nothing terminal) and she has helped me emotionally and physically.  She loves car rides, too. I take her almost everywhere we go that is "dog friendly."  I would be pretty devastated if anything happened to her...so would the rest of my family.

I would just like to get a good guess on her age, so I can get the appropriate food for her.

[EskieDeb]

Awww, four views and no replies. Bummer. ;-)

[SandysBuddy]

Bailey is 2 yo and Buddy is 4 yo and they both have white eye lashes.

[eskilady]

Your vet should be able to tell the age of your baby by looking at its teeth.  the things that you have mentioned are normal.  All eskies have the white eyelashes - they are so great.  They are born with them.  The black around the nose and mouth is normal too.  If you look at the photo section of this forum and pay close attention to the head shots, you will see that alot of them look like Hitler with the black under their nose.  I think that and the white eye lashes are so cute!!  As for food, I would just get her some adult food for now and wait and see what the vet says.  Get some "good" food, like Taste of the Wild or Canidae or some of the other good ones on the market.  Eskies are great dog and make the most wonderful pets.  Thank you for adopting your new baby!!!

[Geno]

Welcome to the board. I think your Vet would come closest to guessing her age. Chester is 18mos and has white eye lashes, so that's not a way to determine age in an Eskie. Energy is also not a way, my last Eskie lived to be 17+ and acted like a puppy until about a week before she passed. Doing zoomies around the house and such. It would have been very hard to guess her age. If she seems "mature" emotionally and mentally, then she's at least 3. Eskies can show puppy behavior as much as 2 - 3 yrs of age. Teeth "can" be an indicator, but your Vet would be able to narrow that one down.

Oh, some pictures would help, not to mention, everyone here loves to see pictures.

Congrats on the new baby! What's her name?

Geno

[EskieDeb]

We named her Foxy. She looks just like an arctic fox....only her tail curls up over her back...
She's just such an awesome dog.  I'm planning on taking her back to the vet soon. I took her once to see if she had a microchip, but the vet, herself was in surgery.  She is not microchipped...yet (Something I plan on doing).  I'm going to take her into the vet soon for a check up.  I'm guessing she is 4 or 5 since her teeth are not worn down.  I have never met such a smart, loving and awesome dog.

[EskieDeb]

I also put how we got her in the welcome area. I have two pictures of her that do not do her justice.

[Paula N.]

I really know how you feel wondering how old your new Eskie is.  When I adopted Angel the shelter said she was "about 5".  I always felt she was older - but - no way to tell.  She had had some terrific training - walked well on loose leash; when I sat down to eat, she immediately left the room or got as far away as possible, and she knew a lot of commands.  I always felt she must have lost a very loving mistress.  She is so very dear to me.

When I got Sweet Pea a few years later (as a companion to Angel, and as someone to play with her to help in losing weight), again, the shelter said she was 1-1/2 years old.  I took her to the vet immediately just to have her checked out, and to get her basic shots.  The vet thought the age estimation was about right, based on the tooth evidence.  She said, "she has all her adult teeth".  So I think you will find out Foxy's age when your vet sees her, or at least you can get a good approximation.  Is Foxy spayed?  You might want the vet to check on that too - very important to know.

I haven't looked at her pictures yet, but looking forward to that.  I took a picture of Angel curled up looking like an artic fox, and wonder if your Foxy will look like Angel.  I actually prefer the foxy-type-looking Eskie, as opposed to the "bear type".  And you mentioned the tail on Foxy curled up.  That is typical Eskie.  Angel only has her tail down after she has worn off some energy (like playing with Sweet Pea) or after a long walk.

If you have more questions, ask away, because we have loads of members with enormous knowledge of Eskies, and they are always happy to answer questions.  And WELCOME TO THE BOARD!

[katie's mom]

Yes, you shouldn't be disappointed that people view your posting but don't respond.  It's a tricky situation, this age business.  Both my eskies have been rescue dogs and so I haven't known their ages.   With the one I have now, Sadie, the first vet told me she was about 5 and then, when she was diagnosed with Cushings, another vet said she was probably at least eight since Cushings doesn't usually strike until a dog is middle-aged.  So there you have it--five years old from one vet and eight years old from another.  And both very good vets.  I tend to believe the latter for a variety of reasons including the fact that she is a pretty laid-back dog.  But the point is that even good vets can differ as much as three years in their age estimates.  And if the previous owners had your dog's teeth professionally cleaned, they might not be a lot of help in fixing your doggie's age either.  Sorry to be so "unhelpful."

[Sugareskie]

EskieDeb--Sounds like you and Foxy were meant to be together. I can't imagine who is happier--you or she! What a wonderful situation you've created. I'm going to go take a look at your photos now.

Lisa

[EskieDeb]

Thanks for all the replies and welcomes! I will post pictures as soon as I have one that I like of her. I've been sick with the flu since last night and she has not left my side. Lays with her head on my chest. I love her so much.