‘I adore this little guy’: Meet TobyKeith, the rescue dog deemed the ‘oldest in the world’

TobyKeith is a 21-year-old Chihuahua, making him the oldest living dog in the world.

His owner, Gisela Shore, adopted him when he was a puppy.

“When I first adopted Toby he was three pounds, just this tiny little thing so I thought how funny, I should name him after this (6 feet and 5 inches) country singer that I love,” Shore said.

Toby is now seven pounds and Shore says he sleeps about 20 hours a day, but when he’s awake he is still active.

“He is up and down the stairs probably 30 to 40 times a day,” she said. “He goes on walks and he does eat very healthy,” Shore said.

Toby starts each day with a piece of turkey and his heart medicine, but Shore says vegetables are his favorite.

“He loves sweet potato, he loves green beans and carrots,” Shore said.

When Shore adopted Toby, she was a foster for the Peggy Adams Animal Rescue League in West Palm Beach. She heard about a couple who was ready to surrender him when she was at the rescue volunteering.

“They were elderly, they couldn’t take care of him so they said, ‘Will you take him and I fell in love and said absolutely,” Shore said.

Brianna Garris is the current foster care manager for the rescue. She hopes Toby’s story is a testament to the importance of giving senior rescue dogs a chance.

“When people see even a 7-year-old, there is a little bit of hesitation; they are a little bit older,” she said. “I think people are worried they are only going to get one or two good years with them before it passes, but I think TobyKeith is a great story that shows some pets do live a really long time.”

Other than diet and exercise, Shore believes all the love Toby gets is the key to his long life and she hopes he lives another 21 years.

“I adore this little guy. I call him my little bodyguard, he is always with me. I just adore him. I can’t imagine my life without him,” Shore said.