Big Bertha: The 49-Year-Old Cow Who Became an Irish Legend

Most cows live somewhere between 15 and 20 years. Big Bertha lived to nearly 49.

Born on St. Patrick’s Day in 1945, on a farm in County Kerry, Ireland, Bertha was a Droimeann cow, a hardy native Irish breed. Farmer Jerome O’Leary bought her as a calf, and she went on to spend nearly half a century with his family, more than doubling the normal lifespan of her kind.

Her long life earned her not one but two Guinness World Records. The first was for her age, she was, and still is, the oldest cow ever recorded, dying just three months short of her 49th birthday. The second was for being the most prolific. Over her lifetime, she gave birth to 39 calves, more than any other cow on record.

But Bertha was more than a set of statistics. She became a genuine local celebrity. She led the St. Patrick’s Day parade in the village of Sneem and made appearances at cattle fairs across the region, using her fame to raise around $75,000 for cancer research and other charities.

And then there is the detail nobody forgets. According to her owner, Bertha suffered from stage fright. To calm her nerves before facing the crowds at these public appearances, he said, she was given a small shot of Irish whiskey.

When she finally passed away on New Year’s Eve in 1993, her community did what any community would do for a beloved local legend. They held a wake for her in the local pub.