Were he able to don boxing gloves, bob and weave, his 111kg mass would allow him to fight as a heavyweight. And if he could dribble and shoot, his 2.2m would make him the envy of the NBA.
But seeing as his paws — not to mention several sporting rules — disqualify him from either pursuit, “Giant George” the Great Dane will instead have to content himself with the title of world’s tallest dog.
CONTROVERSY
George, who lives with his owner, David Nasser, in Tucson, Arizona, has clinched the Guinness world record after his statistics — 109cm from paw to shoulder, 220cm from head to tail — were confirmed on Monday by an official adjudicator following some controversy.
The lofty canine saw off competition from the previous record holder, a four-year-old Great Dane named Titan, thanks to his extra 1.9cm.
The breed appears to have the title sewn up: Before Titan took the crown last year, the glory belonged to Gibson of Grass Valley, California.
“This is a hotly contested record and after some controversy and conflicting media reports we decided to send our own official adjudicator to put the final stamp on this record holder,” said Craig Glenday, the editor-in-chief of Guinness World Records.
“We can indeed say now that George is the top dog,” he said.
Giant George, who has his own Web site — www.giantgeorge.com — as well as Facebook and Twitter pages, consumes about 50kg of food each month and sleeps in his own queen-sized inside the house, Nasser said.
LONGEST EARS?
Those who do not keep a behemoth in a kennel or a leviathan in a fishtank need not be disheartened, however. The company is now searching for other, less obvious record-breakers such as the smallest dog (length), the dog with the longest ears, the oldest dog, the smallest cat and the oldest cat.
“This record has sparked great interest in finding other pet records, so we’re asking everyone to check their dog houses, scratch posts and under the bed,” Glenday said. “They just might be living with a record-breaking pet.”
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