All Good News

30-Year-Old Rafeiro Do Alentejo Breaks Record For World's Oldest Dog Ever

February 4, 2023

A Rafeiro do Alentejo named Bobi has been confirmed as both the world's oldest living dog, and the world's oldest dog ever by Guinness World Records.

Bobi

Born on May 11, 1992, Bobi is now 30 years and 267 days old. He is a purebred Rafeiro do Alentejo, a breed known for protecting livestock with an average life expectancy of 12-14 years. He lives with his family in Portugal.

In 1992 Bobi was registered with Serviço Medico-Veterinário do Município de Leiria (Veterinary Medical Service of the Municipality of Leiria), who have confirmed his birth date.

Bobi's age has also been verified by SIAC, a pet database authorized by the Portuguese government and managed by the SNMV (Sindicato Nacional dos Médicos Veterinários; National Union of Veterinarians).

Bobi in 2016 / 2022

Bobi's owner, Leonel Costa, now aged 38, describes Bobi as "very sociable" as he grew up with many other animals. As for his diet, Bobi has always eaten human food.

"What we ate, they ate too," Leonel said, speaking of all his family's dogs. He believes that this has contributed greatly to Bobi's longevity.

Leonel said that Bobi's mother, Gira, lived to the age of 18, and another one of their dogs, Chicote, lived to be 22.

The previous record-holder for oldest dog ever was Bluey, an Australian cattle-dog who lived to be 29 years and 5 months old, Guinness said.