Bobi loses 'world's oldest dog' title amid doubts over age

Bobi, the world's oldest dog, has come under formal review and its titles have been suspended pending the outcome, the Guinness World Records (GWR) announced on Tuesday.

"A formal review into the oldest dog record is taking place, which involves GWR reviewing evidence we have on file, seeking new evidence, [and] reaching out to experts and those linked to the original application," Amanda Marcus, a spokesperson, said in a statement Tuesday.

The review was launched after veterinarians questioned the age of the Portuguese dog that held the title and was reportedly 31 years old when he died last year, NBC News reported.

After Bobi was announced as the world’s oldest living dog and the oldest dog ever last February, veterinarians questioned the dog's title revealing that its Rafeiro do Alentejo breed which has a common life expectancy of 10-14 years.

Last month, Wired magazine's investigation revealed that Portugal's pet database registered Bobi as born in 1992, but it had "no registration or data that can confirm or deny this statement".

Previously, in May, Bobi's owner Leonel Costa stated that the dog’s mother lived to be 18, and his final age of 31 would have been unimaginable in another era.

Costa also said in a statement that "an elite within the veterinary world... tried to give people the idea that Bobi's life story was not true".

He believed the backlash came because he attributed Bobi's longevity to eating a diet similar to that of humans, rather than pet food which is not recommended by veterinarians.

"Everything would be different if we had said he ate pet food for three decades," Costa said, adding that everything GWR had requested to validate Bobi's age had been met.

After Bobi's death, a 23-year-old Chihuahua named Spike became the oldest living dog, according to GWR.