An American cow has set the Guinness World Record for being the tallest cow ever in the world.
The Holstein dairy cow, called Blosom, measured 190cm (over 6ft tall) when the world record team visited her and her owner Patty Meads-Hanson in Illinois earlier this year.
Sadly, the cow passed away last month after sustaining an irreparable leg injury, Guinness said.
Following further research, Guinness World Records confirmed that Blosom is now recognised as the title holder for Tallest Cow ever, it says.
Blosom’s owner said that the funny thing about Blosom was how unaffected she was by all the attention that seemed to surround her.
“As long as she had her oats, and daily chin rubs and ear scratches, life was good,” she said.
“The biggest challenge in measuring Blosom for the Guinness World Record was to try to find a measure stick that was tall enough to fit her.
“Our veterinarian couldn’t reach her so we had to find a step-ladder for her to stand on.”
There are dangerous moments when handling Blosom like when she has to go to the bathroom. You want to get as far away as possible because she’s been known to splatter up to eight feet.
Patty owned Blosom since she was an eight-week old calf and the cows continued growth led to Patty’s father suggesting Blosoms height should be checked out by Guinness World Records.
Upon confirmation of Blosom being the tallest cow in the world, Guinness World Records sent a film crew and photographer over to the US.
The cow, who was 13 when she died, was born to two normal sized cows and according to Patty, was even taller when she was eight years old.
Blosom will feature in the upcoming Guinness World Records 2016 Edition.
Guinness World Records Editor-in Chief, Craig Glenday, said it holds its tallest animals at Guinness World Records in an extremely high regard due to their uniqueness and rarity in finding.
“We were devastated when we heard the news of Blosom’s death. She is definitely one of the standout highlights in our upcoming book and we hope the world enjoys seeing the pictures of her,” he said.
Guinness World Records says that the previous record holder for the tallest cow ever was Mount Katahdin, a Holstein-Durham cross who, from 1906-1910, stood at 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in) to the shoulder and had a girth measuring 3.96 m (13 ft).
