ANNALS OF THE VERY OLD
World’s oldest woman dies, decrepit dogs fight for top spot, and Flossie takes the feline record
The world’s oldest person, Lucile Randon, a nun also known as Sister André died in her sleep on 17 January at her nursing home in Toulon, France, at the age of 118 years, 340 days. She became the world’s oldest person after the death last April of Kane Tanaka, a 119-yearold Japanese woman. Sister André had previously made the record books in 2021 as the oldest person to recover from Covid, and, although blind and a wheelchair user, continued to help care for other elderly people in her nursing home, many a lot younger than her. “People say that work kills; for me work kept me alive. I kept working until I was 108,” she explained. Asked the inevitable question about the secret of her longevity, Sister André said, “Only the good Lord knows,” although she had previously noted that she felt she would be better off in Heaven. Born into a Protestant family, Sister André converted to Catholicism in her 20s, eventually becoming a nun 15 years later. Despite her contemplative life, she continued to enjoy a daily glass of wine and some chocolate until her death. She had lived through two world wars and remembered greeting her brothers on their safe return from World War I, recalling: “It was rare, in families there were usually two dead rather than two alive.” She remained close to her brothers throughout her life, and announcing her passing, David Tavella, a spokesperson for her nursing home, said: “There is great sadness but... it was her desire to join her beloved brothers. For her, it’s a liberation.” The laurels for the oldest living person have now passed to 115-year-old Maria Branyas of Spain who was born 4 March 1907. For recent coverage of super-centenarians, see FT371:6-7, 383:10-11, 405:10, 409:10. BBC News, 18 Jan 2023.
• In November, the world’s oldest living cat was confirmed as Flossie, a 27-year-old tortoiseshell who lives in Orpington, south London, with Vicki Green, also 27. Born in 1995, Flossie started life as a stray living close to Merseyside Hospital in Liverpool, where she was adopted by one of the hospital workers. She lived with her for 10 years before her owner’s death, after which she went to her late owner’s sister, who kept her for 14 years before she, too, died. Flossie then spent three years with her second owner’s son before being passed to Cat’s Protection for rehoming. “We were flabbergasted when we saw that Flossie’s vet records showed her to be 27 years old,” said Naomi Rosling, the charity’s branch coordinator. “I knew from the start that Flossie was a special cat, but I didn’t imagine I’d share my home with a world record holder,” said Green, who adopted Flossie last August. “She’s so affectionate and playful, especially sweet when you remember how old she is. I’m immensely proud that Cats Protection matched me with such an amazing cat.” Flossie has some way to go though, before she beats the record for the oldest ever documented cat; this was Crème Puff, from Austin, Texas, who was 38 years and 3 days old when she died in August 2005. For more Moggy Methuselahs, see FT363:10-11. Sun, 24 Nov; editioncnn.com, 25 Nov 2022.
• In southern California, Gino, a small mixed breed dog was declared the world’s oldest living dog by the Guinness Book of Records on 22 November. Gino, 22, had been adopted by Alex Wolf and his housemates when they were students in Boulder, Colorado, in 2002. “He wasn’t my first choice,” says Wolf. “I anticipated getting a bigger dog because that’s what I was used to growing up, in the mountains and coming from LA. But this little dog was kind of just staring up at us… he’s been by my side ever since.” Gino’s sight and hearing are failing, but Wolf says that he thrives on “napping by the fire, snacking on salmon treats and riding around the neighbourhood in a wagon,” adding, “We’ve slowed down, we just want to be sure he’s enjoying our time with us.”
However, just a few days later, on 7 December, Gino’s record was usurped by Spike, a 23-year-old chihuahua mix from Ohio, backed up by a veterinary certification saying Spike was “at least 23 years and 7 days old”. Her owner, Rita Kimball, had rescued Spike, then aged 10, after he had been abandoned in a grocery store car park. “He had been shaved up his back, had blood stains around his neck from a chain or rope, and looked pretty rough,” Kimball said, but when she took him to her car, “Spike jumped right in and sat on the seat, as if he knew where we were going. It was meant to be.” He was named Spike after the ferocious dog in Tom and Jerry cartoons. “Spike was a name for a large dog. My guy was small, but he had the attitude of a big dog,” she added. Like Gino, Spike is nearly blind and hard of hearing, and prefers spending time with people he knows and visiting the animals on Kimball’s farm. The longevity record for dogs, though, is still held by Bluey, an Australian cattle dog, who was verified as being 29 years old when he died in 1939. Metro, 24 Nov 2022; editioncnn.com, 20 Jan 2023.