Freddy (17 May 2012 – 27 January 2021) was a

Great Dane The Great Dane is a large sized dog breed originating from Germany. The Great Dane descends from hunting dogs from the Middle Ages used to hunt wild boar and deer, and as guardians of German nobility. It is one of the largest breeds in the world ...

from

Leigh-on-Sea Leigh-on-Sea (), commonly referred to simply as Leigh, is a town and civil parish in the City of Southend-on-Sea, in the ceremonial county of Essex, England. In 2011, it had a population of 22,509. Geography Leigh-on-Sea is on the northern ...

Essex Essex () is a county in the East of England. One of the home counties, it borders Suffolk and Cambridgeshire to the north, the North Sea to the east, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent across the estuary of the River Thames to the south, and G ...

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

, known for being crowned as the world's tallest living dog by the

Guinness Book of World Records ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a reference book published annually, listing world ...

, having taken the title from the previous record holder,

Zeus Zeus or , , ; grc, Δῐός, ''Diós'', label=Genitive case, genitive Aeolic Greek, Boeotian Aeolic and Doric Greek#Laconian, Laconian grc-dor, Δεύς, Deús ; grc, Δέος, ''Déos'', label=Genitive case, genitive el, Δίας, ''D� ...

, who was the tallest dog ever.

Biography

Freddy was born in May 2012 and lived with his owner, Claire Stoneman, at her home in Leigh-on-Sea, Essex, alongside his sister, Fleur. As a puppy, Freddy was, ironically, the runt of the litter, and Stoneman had to take him home sooner than planned, as he was not feeding from his mother. When he was young, Freddy also enjoyed chewing up sofas, destroying 26 of them. Stoneman spent nearly £100 per week to feed him. Freddy was measured by the

Guinness World Records ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a reference book published annually, listing world ...

on 13 September 2016, standing at 3 ft 4.75 in (103.5 cm) to the withers, or 7 ft 5.5 in (227.3 cm) when standing on his hind legs. This took longer than expected, as Freddy was initially afraid of the tape measure. He assumed the title from Zeus, a Great Dane from Michigan. Freddy died on 27 January 2021, aged 8 1/2, after suffering with health issues in his hind legs, causing him to slip easily.

References

2012 animal births 2021 animal deaths Individual dogs Individual animals in the United Kingdom {{pet-stub