Shortest horse to tallest water buffalo: animals who broke records with unique looks
As always at Guinness World Records, we strive to celebrate the unique and unusual, and we also love animals!
Here, we look back at some of the most interesting record-breaking feats achieved by our animal kingdom friends.
He may be small, but he is mighty: meet knee-high Humphrey
If you were to picture a bull, what would come to mind? Something large, indestructible, and solid? They are often the kings of the pen, if you will, but have you ever seen a miniature bull?
On 27 April 2018, a star of the mini animal world was measured, and at a tiny 67.6 cm (26.6 in), became the shortest bull ever.
His name is Heikens Ark Jupiter, but he goes by Humphrey, and his height (or lack of) was tested at Kalona Veterinary Clinic in Iowa, USA.
Humphrey lives on Lime Creek Farm in Iowa with the Gardner family and is a Miniature Zebu breed of bull. When they bid for Humphrey at an animal auction in 2017, they thought he was a calf based on his size, but no, he was two years old and had fully grown to his optimum size, which is no taller than a kitchen chair!
Humphrey spends his days like any other farm animal, eating grass and exploring the field, but what makes him unique amongst the rest is that he is now a Guinness World Records title holder.
A telling tail about the cat who owns it
Next up we have an animal who clawed his way into the record books, with a purr-fectly long tail.
Mr. Pugsley Addams (USA) is a Maine Coon (silver) breed of cat who holds two Guinness World Records titles.
On 24 February 2025 he was confirmed to be the title holder for longest tail on a domestic cat living, and to also have the longest tail on a domestic cat ever.
This gorgeous grey feline is from Mound, Minnesota, and lives with his two sisters Winnie and Dutchess, and his brother, called Gomez. The busy household is looked after by cat lover Amanda Cameron, who told GWR that Pugsley is “incredibly curious, adventurous and smart”.
She added: “He is definitely the biggest troublemaker of the house and VERY creative when it comes to new ways he can be mischievous.”
The family always knew that his tail was super long, but when the time came to finally get the measuring tape out, it came to a length of 46.99 cm (18.5 in).
Read about more record-breaking animals in our dedicated section.
Tall and small: would these water buffalo be best mates?
Here we have two fascinating creatures that are the same species but come in very different shapes and sizes.
First up is King Kong who is the current Guinness World Records title holder of tallest living water buffalo.
This rather large creature is a behemoth bovine, and he lives at Ninlanee Farm located in Nakhon Ratchasimo, Thailand.
King Kong was born on 1 April 2021, and the owners of the farm instantly realized that he seemed a lot bigger than the other water buffalo, in fact he is around 50 cm taller than the average.
This banana-eating buffalo who loves playtime with his humans was measured on 15 January 2025 and was found to have a height of 186 cm (6 ft 0.8 in). The measurement was taken from his hoof to the withers.
On the other side of the height scale is the short but sweet Radha, who is the shortest living water buffalo.
This female Murrah buffalo was born on her owner’s farm in Malawadi, Maharashtra, India and was measured on 12 September 2025.
Once measured, it turned out that she was 83.8 cm (2 ft 8 in) which is only a couple of inches taller than fellow Guinness World Records title holder Jyoti Amge (India) who is the shortest woman living.
Nothing short of a legend: meet the tiny horse with a big reputation
Think of a horse and you probably picture a creature with long legs and a luscious mane galloping off into the sunset? Well, this short king is as gorgeous as any horse, just slightly on the smaller side.
Pumuckel is the title holder of the shortest living horse (male) and this is a record that he broke on 16 August 2025.
When measured in Breckerfield, Germany, the total came to 52.6 cm (21.1 in) and for context, he can be seen here next to a cat.
This tiny celebrity loves the attention and has been trained as a therapy horse who often visits care homes and schools.
There are many species out there in the animal kingdom who are unique and special, and we love to share their stories with the world and celebrate the amazing things that make them who they are.