However sceptics cited by British and US media mentioned Bobi’s ft gave the impression to be a special color in images of him as a pet and snaps of him in his dotage.
And Miguel Figuereido, a veterinarian in Lisbon, advised AFP final 12 months: “He would not seem like a really previous canine … with mobility issues … or with an previous canine’s muscle mass.”
Guinness World Data insisted the suspension was “short-term, whereas (the overview) is ongoing”.
Bobi’s proprietor, Leonel Costa, insisted that every one the “suspicions are unfounded”.
In a press release despatched to AFP, he mentioned that the certification process “took nearly a 12 months” and that he had complied with all the necessities demanded by Guinness.
Costa accused “a sure elite within the veterinary world” of being behind these suspicions, as a result of that they had issue accepting that Bobi had all the time consumed a “pure weight loss plan” as a substitute of pet food.
Bobi, who was formally born on Might 11, 1992, cheated demise in his first days of life.
He and three different puppies have been from a litter born in a woodshed owned by the Costa household within the village of Conqueiros in central Portugal.
As a result of the household already owned so many animals, the mother and father determined to eliminate the new child puppies.
They unwittingly left one pet – Bobi – behind and have been finally persuaded by Leonel Costa and his sister to maintain him.
Costa has attributed Bobi’s longevity to the tranquility of nation residing and his assorted weight loss plan.
He was by no means chained up or placed on a lead, and used to roam the woods across the village earlier than he obtained too previous to maneuver a lot and spent his days lolling across the yard with the household cats, he mentioned.