World’s oldest cat dies AGED 31 after owner, 52, who was given him as a kitten for her 20th birthday pays tribute
- Rubble died just before turning 32 which is almost 150 in human years
- He lived in Exeter, in Devon, with his owner Michele Heritage, 52
- The moggy beat the record of 30-year-old Scooter who died in Texas in 2016
The ‘world’s oldest cat’ has sadly died at the age of 31- the equivalent of 150 human years.
Michele Heritage, 52, got geriatric moggy Rubble as a kitten on her 20th birthday and they have been inseperable ever since.
Rubble, a fluffy Maine Coon became the oldest feline in the world after reaching 31 years old in May last year.
The world’s oldest cat, Rubble sadly passed away at the age of 31-almost 150 in human years. Pictured with owner Michele Heritage,52
Michele got Rubble as a kitten for her 20th birthday, in May 1988 and they have been together ever since.
But Michele, from Exeter, has revealed that sadly he died before turning 32.
She puts his incredible longevity down to the fact she never had her own children and pampered him like her child.
She said: ‘He would have been 32 in May so it was such an achievement.
‘He was an amazing companion that I had the pleasure to live with for such a long time.
‘I got him just before my 20th birthday when he was a kitten.’
Michele puts down his longevity due to her treating him like a child as she hasn’t had her own children
Rubble beat Scooter’s record , a 30-year old Siamese Texas cat who died in 2016. The fluffy moggy died just before reaching 32
Rubble beat the record of Scooter, a Siamese Texas, who was named as a record breaker at the age of 30 by the Guinness Book of World before he died in 2016.
The oldest cat ever according to the record books is Creme Puff who was born on August 3, 1967, and lived until August 6, 2005 – an amazing 38 years and three days.
Michele added: ‘We never went down the route of Guinness Book of Records. I didn’t want to do that given his age. The record wasn’t of interest to us.
‘He grew old very quickly towards the end, I said to my husband at Christmas that I think it would be last we spend with Rubble. He had started to stop eating and only drank water.
‘He became very thin. I went to work as usual and when I got home my husband said Rubble had gone over the road as he did every day and never came back, so we believe he went off to die as cats do.
‘He was a creature of habit, had his favourite places to sleep and liked his food so when that stopped happening, we knew.’
Michele said she remembers the exact moment that she first met Rubble
and claims to be 100 per cent certain of the dates – because it was her 20th birthday.
She added: ‘He was part of a litter cat that my sister’s friend had and I had just left home.
‘I was lonely living on my own so got him in as a kitten. It was in May 1988.
‘I have always treated him like a child – I don’t have any children
and had another cat called Meg – who passed at the age of 25.
‘If you care about something, no matter what it is, it does last.’