World’s tallest dog, 8-year-old Great Dane, dies
Freddy was deemed the tallest Great Dane in 2016 by Guinness World Records
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The world lost a gentle giant this week.
Freddy, the tallest dog in the world, died at the age of 8-and-a-half years old, according to an announcement from Guinness World Records (GWR).
The Great Dane, from Essex, U.K., was awarded his title in 2016 for his massive height of 3 feet 4 inches from foot to withers. When he stood on his hind legs, Freddy was 7 feet 5-and-a-half inches tall, the announcement said.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"He was not just the tallest dog but the dog with the most love and the biggest heart," Freddy’s owner Claire Stoneman said in a statement.
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"He was my life," Stoneman added. "My reason. My joy. My annoyance. My happiness and my ultimate sadness. He was my heart Dane. My one in a million and loved by the entire world."
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Stoneman previously told GWR that when she first got him as a puppy, he was the runt of the litter.
Freddy, the tallest dog in the world, died earlier this week, according to Guinness World Records. (Photo Credit: Paul Michael Hughes/Guinness World Records)
"I had no idea he was going to get this big at all," Stoneman said.
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GWR Editor-in-Chief Craig Glenday, who helped measure Freddy for the record in 2016, called the dog "such a gentle giant."
The 8-and-a-half-year-old Great Dane was 3 feet 4 inches tall from foot to withers. (Photo Credit: Paul Michael Hughes/Guinness World Records)
"It was always a pleasure to see him bounding towards you," Glenday said in a statement.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}"I still can barely believe that he was the runt of the litter," Glenday added. "Freddy brought a smile to everyone's face and will be missed by [everyone] at Guinness World Records. I'm just pleased that we got the chance to celebrate his record-breaking immensity in the books and share his story with millions of people around the world. RIP, Freddy."
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"I can't stop crying," Stoneman told GWR. "He was my life."
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Guinness World Records deemed Freddy the tallest dog in the world in 2016. (Photo Credit: Paul Michael Hughes/Guinness World Records)