Bobby was born on May 11, 1992 and turned 31 last Thursday.
Time flows in a special way for dogs: their average life expectancy is 10-15 years, depending on the breed. But among the domestic animals of the world there are champions who have reached truly Methuselah years. We are talking about a Rafeiro do Alentejo (Portuguese Mastiff) named Bobi.
How writes the Guinness World Records website, Bobi was born on May 11, 1992, and last Thursday he turned 31 years old (in human terms, this is 200 years old!). On Saturday, at his home in the Portuguese village of Conqueiros, where Boby has lived his entire dog life, a big birthday party is planned.
Bobi owner Leonel Costa said it would be “a very traditional Portuguese party”. Guests will be offered dishes from local meat and fish, including for Bobi, who, by the way, eats only human food.
A dance troupe performance is also planned and Bobi will be participating in one of the dances!
At the celebration, as promised by the owner of the dog, there will be more than a hundred guests, and many of them will specially arrive for the sake of the birthday boy from other countries.
Ever since Bobby was awarded the Guinness World Record in February, his life has been hectic.
“A lot of journalists and people from all over the world came to us to take pictures with Boby,” Leonel said. They came from all over Europe, as well as from the US and even Japan.”
Leonel said that Bobi has been in good health in recent months, although he was recently taken to the veterinarian for a checkup. The owner was worried about the possible physical and mental stress of the animal due to such a large number of new people, but so far everything has worked out.
“Many pictures were taken and he had to get up many times, it was not easy,” Leonel said.
Bobi’s date of birth was confirmed by the veterinary service of the municipality of Leiria, who registered Bobi back in 1992, and also verified through the state pet database.
Bobi’s owner has owned several other long-lived dogs in the past, including Bobi’s mother, Giroux, who lived to be 18 years old. However, Leonel never imagined that one of his pets would reach the age of thirty.
According to Leonel, one of the main factors contributing to the longevity of Boby is the calm environment in which he lives and the excellent ecology. From birth, the dog roamed freely in the surrounding forests and never sat on a chain. At the same time, the record holder was always in the company of other animals, so he was never lonely, because Leonel describes his pet as very sociable.
Now, in his old age, Bobby finds it difficult to walk, so he is no longer so active and prefers to spend time in the yard of his house. His eyesight has also deteriorated, so the long-liver often stumbles upon objects while walking.
Like the elderly, Bobby sleeps a lot. After eating, he immediately goes to bed, although on cold days he prefers to take a nap by the fire.
