The Guinness Book of World Records has crowned a new oldest dog. And not just oldest living dog, but is believed to be the oldest dog ever in recorded history.
Bobi, from Portugal, was 30 years 266 days old as of February 1.
So, how much borrowed time has Bobi been living on? According to Guinness, he’s a purebred Rafeiro do Alentejo, which is a breed of livestock guardian dog with an average life expectancy of 12-14 years.
He’s more than double his expected age.
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The previous record belonged to Bluey, an Australian cattle-dog who lived to be 29 years 5 months old.
Bobi’s story goes beyond just being the oldest dog in history. He nearly lost his life as a newborn. His 38-year-old owner recounts the story.
“Unfortunately, at that time it was considered normal by older people who could not have more animals at home […] to bury the animals in a hole so that they would not survive,” his owner, Leonel Costa, told Guinness.
Not long after they were born, Leonel said the pups were taken away to that terrible fate while their mother, Gira, was absent. But in their haste, they didn’t see Bobi left behind. Leonel and his brothers found him later being cared for by Gira.
The boys kept Bobi’s existence a secret from their parents until they dog could open its eyes.
“We knew that when the dog opened its eyes, my parents would no longer bury it,” Leonel told Guinness. “It was popular knowledge that this act could not or should be done.”
