An American quarter horse who still enjoys her daily walks – and weekly “spa days” – has taken the Guinness World Records title as the world’s oldest living horse.
Fancy, whose 38th birthday is on 1 April this year, claimed the title aged 37 years and 329 days, this month. She lives in Virginia, US, with her owner Paige and her best friend Rosie, a donkey.
The mare, then called Josey Wales, arrived at the yard at which Paige rode as a child, and Paige said she “felt an immediate connection”. She begged her parents to buy her, and her wish was granted in June 2000, when Paige was eight and the mare 12.
“It was one of the best moments of my life,” said Paige, who renamed the mare as “she was way too fancy to have such an ugly name”.
Fancy, officially known as Tracies Lil Kleberg, and Paige have the same birthday and always celebrate it together at the yard.
“As Fancy entered her golden years, her vets recommended finding a small friend to support her,” a Guinness World Records spokesperson said.
“After researching, Paige and her daughter visited a rescue where they fell in love with Rosie, who was quite sick. They adopted her, brought her home and nursed her back to health so she could meet Fancy. Paige now describes the best friends as ‘two peas in a pod’ who spend their days soaking in the sun together.
“Paige visits them daily to take them on ‘granny walks’ and in the summer, they have ‘spa days’ once a week. As Fancy has got older, she has lost vision, so Rosie has become her ‘seeing eye donkey’.”
Paige said there is no “secret sauce” to Fancy’s longevity and that the world’s oldest living horse has had some health issues.
But “Fancy never gives up and is such a strong-willed horse [so] in return, I will not give up on her,” she said, adding that her approach to having any animal is “treat them the way you wish to be treated, especially in old age”.
“I think so many owners only value a horse who can be ridden, but they are so much more than that,” she said.
“I am so lucky to have such a spirited horse and sassy donkey to share memories with daily. They have taught me and my young daughter so much empathy, patience, perseverance and grace.”
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