Guest Author - Meg Grooms

Every living thing has a finite life span. We are all born and we all die. Some animals have relatively short life spans, the hamster is one example. Some animals, especially of the reptilian and large bird variety, can live for twenty years, fifty years, even seventy five years.

When selecting a pet it is imperative that you know their expected life span and make arrangements for their long-term care in the event you can no longer for the animal. This is especially important when selecting an animal for your child as they will eventually leave home and may not be able to take the animal with them.

Animal life spans vary widely within a species and can be affected by genetics, size, living conditions, medical conditions and lack of proper care. The following list provides the average life span a variety of animals as accepted by professional groups. Remember these numbers generally represent the average life span with proper care and no major medical events, your particular animal may have a shorter or longer life.

As a reference:
Large dog - 12 years
Small dog - 20 years
Cat - 25 years (indoors), 15 years (outdoors)

Average exotic pet life span:
Rat - 3 years
Mouse - 2 years
Hamster - 3 years
Gerbil - 3 years
Tarantula male - 1 year after maturation (3 years total)
Tarantula female - 30 years after maturation (33 years total)
Squirrel - 8 years
Scorpion - 5 years
Hedgehog - 7 years
Guinea Pig - 5 years
Sugarglider - 10 years
Possum - 5 years
Rabbit - 10 years
Gecko - 15 years
Iguana - 15 years
Lemur - 19 years
Cichlid - 12 years
Large Carp - 100 years
Raccoon - 10 years
Chinchilla - 13 years
Corn snake - 12 years
Boa Constrictor - 23 years
Pot Bellied Pig - 15 years
Bearded Dragon - 10 years
Small Monkey - 15 years (up to 25 depending on type)
Large Ape - 40 years
Sun Conure - 25 years
Hermit crab - 25 years (in reality it's often less than 2 years due to poor education and care)
Greenwing Macaw - 70 years
Cockatoo - 40 years
African Grey Parrot - 50 years
Cockatiel - 30 years
Canary - 20 years
Lorikeet - 15 years
Zebra Finch - 17 years
Gouldian Finch - 6 years
Eclectus Parrot - 20 years
Box Turtle - 50 years (100 is possible)
Slider Turtle - 7 years
Toad - 15 years
Leopard Frog - 6 years
Large Carp - 100 years