LEIRIA: Bobi, a 30-year-old guard dog who cheated death in his first days, is living out the end of his life as a celebrity in central Portugal after being declared the world’s oldest dog ever.
When he was recognized by Guinness World Records as the world’s oldest dog on February 1, he broke a nearly century-old record previously held by Bluey, an Australian cattle dog who died in 1939 at the age of 29 years and five months.
A purebreed Rafeiro, a Portuguese livestock guard dog whose normal life expectancy is between 12 and 14, Bobi was not supposed to live at all, never mind make it this long.
He was born on May 11, 1992, along with three other pups in a wood storage shed owned by the Costa family in the small village of Conqueiros in central Portugal.
Because the family owned so many animals, the father decided they couldn’t keep the newborn puppies and the parents took them from the shed the next day, while the mother dog Gira was out, said Leonel Costa, who was eight years old at the time.
But they didn’t realize they had left one puppy behind — his coloring made him blend in with the surrounding wood.
Leonel and his sister were heartbroken that the puppies were being killed.
But then they noticed that Gira kept returning to the shed, had a look and discovered the surviving puppy.
They decided to keep his existence a secret until he could open his eyes.
“We knew they wouldn’t do anything to him then and that Bobi would remain with us. So we kept the secret,” Leonel told AFP.
“Afterwards, we were punished, but it was worth it,” he said.
Today Bobi is living out his twilight years oblivious that he is a world record holder, except for the media visits following the Guinness classification.
“We didn’t expect this reaction,” Leonel said.
Leonel attributes Bobi’s longevity to the tranquility of country living and his human diet, which includes lots of meat and fish.
“He has always eaten what we eat,” he said.
He has never been chained up or put on a leash and used to roam the woods around the village.
Today walking has become difficult, so he spends most of the time hanging out in the yard with cats or napping after meals.
Many of the Costa dogs have lived a long life. Bobi’s mother Gira lived to 18 years and another dog lived to 22.
“We see situations like this as a normal result of the life they have, but Bobi is one of a kind,” Leonel told Guinness.
World’s oldest dog Bobi, 30, is also one of the luckiest
https://arab.news/yrwj5
World’s oldest dog Bobi, 30, is also one of the luckiest
- Bobi was recognized by Guinness World Records as the world’s oldest dog on February 1
Some Warren Buffett wisdom on his last day leading Berkshire Hathaway
OMAHA, Nebraska: The advice that legendary investor Warren Buffett offered on investing and life over the years helped earn him legions of followers who eagerly read his annual letters and filled an arena in Omaha every year to listen to him at Berkshire Hathaway’s annual meetings.
Buffett’s last day as CEO is Wednesday after six decades of building up the Berkshire conglomerate. He’ll remain chairman, but Greg Abel will take over leadership.
Here’s a collection of some of Buffett’s most famous quotes from over the years:
___
“Be fearful when others are greedy, and greedy when others are fearful.”
That’s how Buffett summed up his investing approach of buying out-of-favor stocks and companies when they were selling for less than he estimated they were worth.
He also urged investors to stick with industries they understand that fall within their “circle of competence” and offered this classic maxim: “Rule No. 1: Never lose money. Rule No. 2: Never forget Rule No. 1.”
___
“After they first obey all rules, I then want employees to ask themselves whether they are willing to have any contemplated act appear the next day on the front page of their local paper to be read by their spouses, children and friends with the reporting done by an informed and critical reporter.
“If they follow this test, they need not fear my other message to them: Lose money for the firm and I will be understanding; lose a shred of reputation for the firm and I will be ruthless.”
That’s the ethical standard Buffett explained to a Congressional committee in 1991 that he would apply as he cleaned up the Wall Street investment firm Salomon Brothers. He has reiterated the newspaper test many times since over the years.
___
“You only find out who is swimming naked when the tide goes out.”
Many companies might do well when times are good and the economy is growing, but Buffett told investors that a crisis always reveals whether businesses are making sound decisions.
___
“Who you associate with is just enormously important. Don’t expect that you’ll make every decision right on that. But you are going to have your life progress in the general direction of the people you work with, that you admire, that become your friends.”
Buffett always told young people that they should try to hang out with people who they feel are better than them because that will help improve their lives. He said that’s especially true when choosing a spouse, which might be the most important decision in life.
___
“Our unwavering conclusion: never bet against America.”
Buffett has always remained steadfast in his belief in the American capitalist system. He wrote in 2021 that “there has been no incubator for unleashing human potential like America. Despite some severe interruptions, our country’s economic progress has been breathtaking.”
