Portuguese dog Bobi posthumously stripped of oldest dog title

By Alyssa McMurtry

OVIEDO, Spain (AA)- The Guinness Book of World Records announced on Thursday that it had stripped Bobi, formerly known as the world’s oldest dog, of his title.

Bobi died last October and was thought to be 31 years and five months old at the time.

But soon after the news of his unprecedented age hit headlines around the world, vets and dog experts expressed their suspicions that a dog would be able to live that long.

“This is the equivalent of a human living to over 200 years old which, given our current medical capabilities, is completely implausible. Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence, and no concrete evidence has been provided to prove his age,” Danny Chambers, a vet and council member of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons, told The Guardian at the time.

Guinness World Records said that following the concerns, it launched an investigation to review the accuracy of the dog’s ripe old age.

According to the investigation, there simply was not enough evidence to back the claims of Bobi’s owners.

“Central to Bobi’s evidence was microchip data sourced from the Portuguese government database, the SIAC, which it transpires, when chipped in 2022, did not require proof of age for dogs born before 2008,” Director of Records Mark McKinley said in a statement.

Further, the veterinary statement used to support Bobi’s title was also based on the microchip information, which could have been invented.

McKinley added that the organization is unable to crown a new oldest dog for now.

Instead of accepting only microchip evidence, which still has not “caught up with pet ownership, especially of elderly pets,” he said Guinness will require other documentary evidence for a pet’s age.

“We certainly hope that the publicity around the record title encourages pet owners from around the world to get in touch,” he added.

Bobi’s previous owner, Leonel Costa, was informed of the decision but has yet to comment publicly.

The previous record was held by the Australian cattle dog Bluey, born in 1910, who was said to have lived to 29 years and five months.