Toffee was more than 15 and a half when he died last week, leaving a big hole in his family’s heart
Amy Baker, of Hull, with Toffee, who was at least 15 and a half years old when he died(Image: UGC)
He may have been just a little rabbit but Toffee has left a huge hole in the Baker family from Hull after passing away last week. And the family have been left in shock after discovering he was one of the oldest pet rabbits in the UK, and possibly the world.
The beloved Rex rabbit died in his owner Amy Baker’s arms last Tuesday, and the potentially record-breaking rabbit was more than 15 years old. That far exceeds the maximum life expectancy of 12 years for rabbits, and they usually only live for six to eight years.
Toffee initially belonged to Amy’s sister, but when she moved house there was no room for the little chestnut brown boy. That’s when Amy, 36, stepped in to give him a loving home with her husband Daniel, 43.
Amy, who works in Morrisons in Anlaby, said she missed him terribly: “It’s been really sad, but I’ve got plenty of photos of him. Our dog Milo misses him too, he used to sit and wash him and occasionally cuddle in with him, give him a quick lick. He’s a lovely labrador and wouldn’t hurt a fly.”
“My sister has been in tears. She got him in 2010 from Pets at Home and had him at our parents’ house for a while but there was no room in the garden when she moved, so I took him on and he’s been our pet ever since. He was an outdoor rabbit but we’d bring him in during the winter, and as he’s got older he stayed indoors with us. He was also going blind – he was getting old – so we wanted him indoors.”
Sadly the OAP – old aged pet – suddenly went off his food last week, so Amy took him straight to the vets. There she was told that his tiny body was shutting down but that they could give him some medication to take away the pain and make him comfortable.
She said: “I had the choice of having him put to sleep there and then, or for him to have medication to make him comfortable so I could take him home for his last hours. I wrapped him in a blanket, kept him close to me and he passed away in my arms.”
After collecting his ashes, Amy has realised that at more than 15 and a half years old he was potentially one of the oldest pet rabbits in existence. However, he has never had documents to show his ‘birthday’ so his exact age can’t be verified.
Toffee was almost as old as Mick the agouti rabbit, from Illinois, US, who was recognised by Guinness World Records as the oldest living rabbit following his 16th birthday on February 9 2019. Both were beaten by Flopsy from Australia who lived the longest, holding that world record at nearly 19 years old.
Amy added: “We don’t know exactly how old he was, but he’s on the Gables Veterinary Centre’s records in Hessle when my sister took him in to be castrated back in 2010, so he could be knocking 16. He had a really good life and a long innings!”
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