Shop 
Bluey, The World’s Oldest Dog Ever
The world’s oldest living dog on record is Bluey, a female Australian Cattle Dog that lived to be over 29 years old! Bluey lived in Rochester, Australia and remains a celebrity in the little town. In 2023, Bluey’s record was briefly displaced when Guinness World Records (“GWR”)certified Bobi, a 31-year old male purebred Rafeiro do Alentejo in Portugal, as the oldest living dog. But that certification was suspended when Bobi’s age was called into question. (Since Bobi’s GWR title is in question, there is no current GWR record holder.)
Before Bluey’s record-breaking lifespan, the world record holder was Bramble, a female Border Collie that lived to be 25 years old in the UK. Indeed, Bramble once held the GWR for oldest living dog.
All of these lifespans are exceptional, as the typical life expectancy for dogs is much shorter. Generally, the larger and heavier the dog, the shorter the lifespan. A 100-dog study into Bluey’s breed, Australian Cattle Dogs, revealed that, while the breed does tend to live an average of 1 year longer than dogs of other breeds, the average life expectancy is still just over 13 years, making Bluey’s long lifespan uncharacteristically exceptional. Similarly, Bobi’s Rafeiro do Alentejo breed typically lives around 12-14 years.
What The World’s Oldest Living Dogs Have In Common
Much like our fascination with the Blue Zones, the world’s oldest dogs necessarily beg the question: What, if anything, do these dogs have in common? Unsurprisingly, the unifying theme among the longest living dogs appears to be a diet consisting of fresh, human food.
Bluey ate a homemade diet of kangaroo meat, among other fresh, human food. Bluey also worked as a sheep and cattle dog for 20 years, which likely contributed to his overall health well into old age. Bobi’s owner, Leonel Costa, similarly credited Bobi’s longevity to his human food diet, which was soaked in water to remove excess seasonings. Bobi also enjoyed vegetables and herbs from the Costa family’s garden. Like Bluey, Bobi lived in a peaceful environment with the freedom to roam and exercise.
Perhaps most interesting was Bramble’s diet, comprised of entirely fresh, plant-based food. Indeed, Bramble’s owner fed all the family’s dogs this way, and once noted that they all lived well beyond typical life expectancy. While a whole food, plant-based diet for dogs might surprise some people, it shouldn’t. Hypoallergenic pet food has been made predominantly with plant protein for decades, it just has not been marketed as plant-based. But at least 10% of dogs have animal protein allergies and plant protein is generally easier to digest. It is unsurprising, therefore, that a diet of plant-based, fresh human food would have helped to contribute to Bramble’s record-breaking old age.
Diet Trumps Dog Breed Among The Oldest Living Dogs
Against this backdrop, here are the key takeaways if you want your pooch to have a chance at being the next oldest living dog, or at least living to a healthy old age:
- Old age is attributed more to diet than dog breeds.
- Feed a diet of gently cooked, human food rather than low quality, ultra-processed dry food.
- Activity and exercise can help to contribute to overall well being and increased lifespan.
Just like Bramble the dog’s diet, we source the highest quality, human-grade whole food ingredients. Free from all the common pet food allergens of beef, dairy, chicken, soy, egg and wheat gluten, Bramble’s easy-to-digest organic plant-based recipes are gently cooked to maintain the maximum nutritional value. Our recipes are higher in protein than many meat-based pet foods, ensuring dogs receive the benefits of a carefully formulated plant-based diet that is high in amino acids. Formulated by vet nutritionists, Bramble gives our doggies (and their pet parents!) everything they want and need, and nothing they don’t! In fact, studies show that carefully formulated vegan dog food means more dog years with less trips to the vet!
When deciding on the perfect name for our company, where better to look for inspiration than Bramble, one of the oldest living dogs that proved our companion animals can thrive on fresh, plant-based dog food. You can add our recipes to your doggy’s long life here.