Adulthood – About Boxers

Aging is a gradual biological process that begins at birth, and continously intensifies until death. No matter what the species, aging causes cellular, metabolic, and organic changes. We are beginning to better understand these changes in dogs.
The most important change is probably that of increasing variability between members of a canine population that is already very heterogeneous, with individual size being one of the most important factors. We should therefore take a critical approach with regard to general trends based on averages because, while clinical examination reveals a slowdown in many biological processes in old dogs, such changes could also be caused by certain intercurrent diseases. Furthermore, the emergence of new physiological theories based on the concept of chaotic dynamics has sometimes caused us to rethink what medical wisdom has classically attributed to aging, namely, that aging is merely the consequence of disruption of an automatic, ordered, living system. It follows that random effects could appear that would change the organism’s normal rhythms. Paradoxically, however, a young and healthy heart may behave more chaotically than an old heart.
Sometimes, although of course this is not a general rule, more regular function comes with old age.
Before becoming old, however, the dog becomes “mature.” In fact, we can consider that, biologically speaking, there are two successive stages in the life of an adult dog, with the second of these preceding old age.