A dog whose Indian owner claims he is the world's most valuable will celebrate with a helicopter flight to a party in his honour.
S Satish, 49, is a renowned dog breeder from Bengaluru in Karnataka state who owns over 150 dogs of various breeds.
He said he was recently offered 200 million rupees ($2.5 million) for his Caucasian shepherd, named Cadaboms Hayder.
The enormous brown and black dog won 32 medals, including best dog breed, at a recent Kennel Club show.
Mr Satish said he was offered the eye-watering amount for his dog after the stunning success.
“But I have refused to sell him because Hayder is my child,” Mr Satish told The National.
“He is the biggest dog ever. He is taller than me and I stand six feet, one inches [1.85 metres] tall. He is adorable. He is a miracle … the way he looks, he is different. He is unique. He is not just biggest in the country but the world,” he said.
The Caucasian shepherd is native to Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan and parts of Russia. It is a guard dog used to guide and protect herds of livestock from wolves.
It is a heavy canine breed and on average weighs 77kg.
Mr Satish said that Hayder's parents were two dogs he bought from Russia for a staggering 100 million rupees ($1.2 million) nine years ago.
Hayder, who is 18 months old, weighs 110kg and stands 2.1 metres tall on two legs. He eats 3kg of chicken and six eggs in a day and lives in an air-conditioned apartment.
“Ever since he was born, he seemed unique. He was five times the size of other puppies in the litter. I knew he was going to be a special dog,” Mr Satish said.
“I bought a two-bedroom apartment for him and hired two helpers to look after him. I wanted to protect him from everyone because he is unique.
“Whoever has seen him has offered me money to buy him. I have told them they can take him for free but I will not sell him because I will remain his owner.”
Although Hayder is already famous, Mr Satish has made elaborate plans to officially introduce him to the world.
He has planned an alien-themed event and has invited 1,500 celebrities, politicians and other VIPs.
He has hired Russian cabaret dancers, superbikers and a helicopter to fly Hayder to an event next month.
“I want everyone to see him. He doesn’t belong to this world,” his owner said. “He is special, so I have planned an alien-themed event.”
“He will fly in a helicopter to the site. Then bikers on superbikes will escort him to the stage. After that he will do a fashion show with Russian dancers. I have spent five million rupees,” he said.
“I am getting offers from Mercedes Benz and Jaguar for tie-ups. He deserves a special introduction.”
This is not the first time that Mr Satish has been in the limelight. In 2016, he became an overnight sensation after he bought two Korean mastiff dogs for 10 million rupees ($120,000) each.
He imported the dogs from China and drove them home from the airport in Rolls-Royce and Range Rover cars.
