Everyone wants their dog to live as long as possible. It turns out that, like humans, mice and cats, feeding a dog a healthy diet, without over feeding or under feeding, yields the healthiest and longest lived dog.**

Purina ran the study for 14 years, and used 48 Labrador Retrievers. Half were fed enough food to keep them lean, the other half were over fed. The lean group lived an average of 1.8 years longer, and although they developed the same illnesses as the other group, they developed them two years later, and the illnesses were generally less severe.

The study was ground breaking in several ways: it was the first to use dogs rather than rats, it was the first to follow them for their full life cycle, and all dogs received the same 100% balanced and nutritional diet.

To read the study, see JAVMA, Vol. 220, No. 9, May 1, 2002, pp.1315-1320

**Lean or ideal body condition refers to the evaluation of body physique in pets as an indicator of their overall health and well-being, generally falling into three categories: too heavy, ideal and too thin.