'Oldest dog ever,' Bobi, stripped of title by Guinness World Records after death
A picture taken on February 12, 2023 shows Bobi, a 30 year-old Portuguese dog that has been declared the world's oldest dog by Guinness World Records, at his home in the village of Conqueiros near Leiria. (Photo by PATRICIA DE MELO MOREIRA/AFP via Getty Images)
LISBON, Portugal - Guinness World Records has ruled to revoke the title of a Portuguese dog that died last year who was erroneously awarded oldest canine ever.
GWR said "no longer has the evidence it needs to support Bobi’s claim as the record holder," following an investigation.
Who is Bobi the dog?
Bobi, a reportedly 31-year-old dog who lived in a farm in Portugal was proclaimed the world's oldest living dog ever in February 2023.
Bobi was a purebred Rafeiro do Alentejo, a breed that has an average life expectancy of about 10 to 14 years.
Bobi was allegedly born on May 11, 1992 and died last October.
Why was his title suspended?
A picture taken on Feb. 12, 2023, shows Bobi, a 30 year-old Portuguese dog that was declared the world's oldest dog by Guinness World Records, walking in the surroundings of his home in the village of Conqueiros near Leiria. ((Photo by PATRICIA DE MEL)
After concerns were raised by independent experts, veterinarians and media investigations, GWR said it opened up an investigation into the validity of Bobi's age.
"We take tremendous pride in ensuring as best we can the accuracy and integrity of all our record titles," Mark McKinley, GWR’s Director of Records, who conducted the review, said in a statement.
Last month, pending a review, Bobi's title was temporarily suspended before GWR ultimately decided to revoke it completely this month.
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GWR said they found that a lack of evidence from Bobi's microchip data left them with no conclusive evidence of Bobi’s date of birth.
McKinley said that it was too early to speak about a new record holder.
"It’s going to take a long time for microchip uptake around the world to catch up with pet ownership, especially of older pets," he said.
"Until that time, we’ll require documentary evidence for all years of a pet’s life," he said.
This story was reported from Los Angeles. The Associated Press contributed.