Question

At an animal rescue, 40% of the animals are dogs and 60% of the animals are cats. If the average age of the dogs is 9 months and the average age of the cats is 2 months, what is the average age of all the animals?

3.6
4.8
5.5
6.2

Answer 1

To find the average age of all the animals at the rescue, we can use the weighted average based on the percentages of dogs and cats.

1. **Calculate the average age contributions:**
- For dogs:
- Percentage of dogs = 40% = 0.4
- Average age of dogs = 9 months
- Contribution to the average age = \(0.4 \times 9 = 3.6\) months

- For cats:
- Percentage of cats = 60% = 0.6
- Average age of cats = 2 months
- Contribution to the average age = \(0.6 \times 2 = 1.2\) months

2. **Sum the contributions:**
- Total average age = Contribution from dogs + Contribution from cats
\[
\text{Total average age} = 3.6 + 1.2 = 4.8 \text{ months}
\]

Thus, the average age of all the animals is **4.8 months**. The correct answer is **4.8**.