World

World’s Oldest Cat Confirmed

Screenshot of Flossie posted on Twitter by @GWR.

Melanie Wilcox Contributor
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The Guinness Book of World Records has recognized Flossie as the world’s oldest living cat at the age of 26 years and 316 days, which is the equivalent of 120 human years, according to the organization’s website.

Other than being poorly sighted and deaf, the British cat is in good health, according to Guinness World Records. Vicki Green, Flossie’s owner, describes her as playful, curious, adaptable, and unbothered by deafness. She purrs naps, curls in her yellow blanket, and likes her big bowls of food. (RELATED: Fat Cat Study: Domestic Cats Are Heavier Than They Used To Be)

“She never turns her nose up at the chance of a good meal,” Green told GWR.

The United Kingdom’s leading cat welfare charity Cats Protection began caring for Flossie in August 2022 after she had become homeless.

“We were flabbergasted when we saw that Flossie’s vet records showed her to be 27 years old,” said Cats Protection’s Branch Co-coordinator Naomi Rosling.

Cats Protection then matched Flossie with Vicki.

Born in 1995, Flossie lived the first few months of her life as a feral cat. She was then adopted by a worker at Merseyside hospital and lived with her owners until they passed away 10 years later. The sister of the owner took Flossie in for 14 years until she passed away. At age 24, Flossie needed a new home. The owner’s son took her in before entrusting her to volunteers at Cats Protection’s Tubrbidge Wells, Crowborough and District Branch.

“He sought our help when it was in Flossie’s best interests,” Naomi Rosling at Cats Protection told GWR. “Responsible cat ownership is when someone thinks about an animal’s needs above their feelings.”

Green says Flossie is in good health. “She was loud for the first few nights because she can’t see in the dark and was a bit confused in her new surroundings, but she sleeps through the night now, snuggled on the bed with me,” Green told GWR.