It is a fact of life. We all slow down

In recent months I have been watching my dear old dog become just that... old.
He is nearly 13 which makes him about 91 in human years.
The kids have asked me how come dogs have to age so fast and of course I do not have the answer to that question.
Perhaps it is so that we do not outlive them and leave them to fend for themselves.
Or maybe it is to show us what we can expect as we reach those latter years in life.
Navy, my dog, has had back problems for about five years. That has meant no jumping on or off furniture and definitely no stairs for him! For me that has meant extra care duties, lifting him and carrying him.
In the past few years he has gradually lost vision in his right eye to a cataract and most recently I have noticed his hearing is not so good anymore.
As I walked him part way down the street and then carried him Monday, I found myself noticing that I too am slowly losing my hearing. I barely heard a car coming down the street behind us, something I never would have missed when I was a kid.
In fact my dad used to call me "Rabbit Ears" as I was able to hear him and my mom having their adult talks downstairs after we had gone to bed. He knew I was listening and would yell up, "Get to sleep Rabbit Ears!"
In any event we know that as time goes by we slow down. It is a fact of life. It just sucks that we have to see it so accelerated in our dogs.
–Until then, Ken