AN Australian dog, the world’s oldest, died at the age of 30 in southwest Victoria, owner of the dog said yesterday.

    The kelpie, called Maggie, was found dead by her owner Brian McLaren earlier this week on his farm, near the rural town of Warrnambool.

    “She was 30 years old, she was still going along nicely last week, she was walking from the dairy to the office and growling at the cats and all that sort of thing,” McLaren said.

    “She just went downhill in two days and I said yesterday [Tuesday] morning when I went home for lunch ... She hasn’t got long now.”

    “I’m sad, but I’m pleased she went the way she went.”

    Last year, Maggie shot to worldwide fame when the farm dog featured in a newspaper report claiming she was “oldest pooch in the world.”

    If Maggie was indeed 30 years old, the Kelpie would have been nearing her third century in dog years — where each human year is worth seven for man’s best friend.

    Maggie’s age cannot be verified as McLaren lost the dog’s paperwork when she was a puppy.

    However, McLaren said he brought Maggie back to the family farm when his youngest son, Liam, was just 4. He is now 34 years old, meaning the extraordinary dog was at least 30.

    Maggie has already been buried beside the McLarens’ other dog in a marked grave under a pine tree.

    “We were great mates, it is a bit sad,” said McLaren.

    Maggie, who was deaf but had not been for a vet check for 15 years, was still working as the farm’s guard dog in her later years.

    The Victorian Kelpie was almost killed in October last year when a utility vehicle ran over her while she slept on the road. But she lived to tell the tale.

    Most dogs live between 8 and 15 years. Records of dogs living more than 20 years are extremely rare and usually involve smaller breeds.

    Officially, the title of the oldest dog in the world still belongs to Bluey, an Australian cattle-dog from Rochester in Victoria, which reached 29 years and five months.

    According to the Guinness Book of Records his owner bought him as a puppy in 1910 and he grew up to work among the sheep and cattle until he was put down in November 1939.(SD-Agencies)