The journey of the Northamptonshire rescue cat who held the World Record for loudest purr, lost it and then regained it

Did you know Northamptonshire has a claim to fame in the form of the world’s loudest purring cat?

Smokey – a rescue cat who lived in Pitsford – has hit national headlines recently for regaining the Guinness World Record for loudest purr, well jointly regaining it.

It all started in 2011 when Smokey's loud purring skills came to light following a story by Chronicle & Echo, which featured Smokey and his owner Ruth Adams appearing on a BBC Radio Northampton show to promote the spaying and neutering of cats with the idea of gaining publicity from a purring competition.

On March 25, 2011 Smokey successfully set the first Guinness World Record – while relaxing in his Northamptonshire home - for purring, measuring 67.7db when measured at a distance of one metre from a decibel reader.

After four years of holding the title, Smokey was challenged by a cat called Merlin from Torquay in Devon. On May 13, 2015 Merlin recorded a purr at 67.8db, with a Guinness World Record adjudicator present.

But Smokey’s owner– and biggest cheerleader – raised concern earlier this year over her beloved cat losing the title. Ruth believes “no decibel reader in the world even in a scientific soundproof room can offer an accurate reading as there is a margin of error with all machines to the extent of 0.6db to 2db”. Ruth believes Merlin would have been purring quieter than Smokey.

Since February 2023, Ruth has taken Smokey’s mission to an international scale and has carried out extensive research with sound engineers and received technical expertise from The Massey University in New Zealand. She then called on Guinness World Records to question Merlin’s record as she believes it is impossible to confirm the recordings were accurate and louder than Smokey's.

Ruth said: “At the time that Smokey lost his Guinness World Records title to Merlin in 2015 I was suffering from a full dislocation of my knee so I took little notice of the news and it was only in February this year that I actually looked into the recordings and official footage taken of Merlin carrying out his Guinness World Records record trails and I became aware of the inaccuracies of decibel sound readings and a few other concerns."

Now, Guinness World Records has confirmed that Smokey will be included as joint-holder of loudest purr by a domestic cat.

Ruth added: “I am absolutely delighted that Smokey's reputation as the World's Loudest Purring Cat has been restored.

"I am so pleased that Guinness World Records were prepared to listen to my concerns. It felt like a very daunting task especially after so much time had passed, however after some very determined effort research and some expert technical assistance all the way from New Zealand, it proves that if you really set your mind to something by you can sometimes achieve what seems almost impossible."

Sadly, Smokey’s purring days are over as he passed away a number of years ago, but Ruth wanted to honour his achievements. Merlin has also since died, so Ruth was keen for the pair to be honoured in the “name of fairness”.

Smokey’s ‘pawtobiography’ – ‘Smokey the very loud purring cat’ – is available on Amazon now.

The Guinness World Record can be viewed here.