A 26-year-old cat could break a world record after his owners discovered that he is two years older than the planet’s current oldest feline.
Charlie Briggs from Turner, Oregon, contacted the Guinness World Records after her friend suggested she should find out whether her moggy Samm might be the world’s oldest cat.
“I asked Guinness, and they were like, ‘The oldest living cat we have on record right now is 24,’
“I’m like, ‘What? He’s older than 24.’ I was like just freaking out. Then I was putting it to my friends on social media like, ‘Guys, he could do it. He could win.’ They’re like, ‘Go for it, go for it!’ Yeah, we’re going for it.”Play Video
Briggs adopted the stray cat in Memphis back in 2002 and a recent trip to the vets confirmed Samm was 26 years old and in good health. He’s blind in one eye and has some kidney issues.
The owner is in the process of submitting the required evidence to Guinness World Records so that Samm can be officially recognized, according to a story from Fox 12 in Oregon.
According to the Guinness Book of Records, there are many wild and wonderful creatures ageing gracefully on Earth. Here are some of the highlights:
Oldest land animal (living)
Jonathan, a Seychelles giant tortoise, is the oldest land animal alive in the world. He is believed to have been born in 1832, making him 189 years old in 2021.
Oldest animal ever
The longest-lived animal ever discovered is a quahog clam, estimated to be 507 years old.
It had been living on the seabed off the north coast of Iceland until it was scooped up by researchers in 2006 as part of a climate change study.
It was nicknamed Ming after the Chinese dynasty which was in power during the clam’s birth year 1506.
Oldest goldfish ever
Greatly exceeding her species’ average lifespan of 10-15 years, Tish the goldfish lived to be 43 years old – far longer than the average lifestyle for her species of 10-15 years.
Tish was won at a fairground stall in 1956 by seven-year-old Peter Hand, with whom she stayed until her sad passing on August 6, 1999.
Oldest fish & oldest vertebrate
The rarely seen Greenland shark can live for 392 years – and perhaps even longer.
This deep-dwelling predator, which only becomes sexually mature at 150 years old, is widely distributed across the North Atlantic Ocean. These cold waters are thought to contribute to the species’ longevity.
