A sloth in the German city of Krefeld, who was considered to be the oldest sloth in the world, has died at the age of 54.

The two-toed sloth was named Jan and lived at the zoo in the western city of Krefeld, near Düsseldorf. In a statement on Tuesday, the Krefeld zoo announced that he had passed last week.

"It was very difficult for his keepers to say goodbye to him, as some of them had known and cared for him for over 25 years," the statement read.

The sloth was born in the wild in 1969. He had spent time in Hamburg's Hagenbeck Zoo in 1986 and spent the rest of his life, 38 years, in Krefeld. 

22 pups with 2 zoo paramores

In 2021, Jan gained notoriety when he was entered into the Guinness World Records in as the "Oldest sloth in human care."

The title was previously held by another sloth in Germany, Paula,who lived in the zoo of the eastern city of Halle.

"He had the nickname 'record sloth' not only because of his age, but also because of his high number of offspring," the zoo said.

Jan is said to have fathered 22 sloth pups in Krefeld with females Lolita and Trine. Despite his old age, Jan fathered his last baby, a girl, with Trine in March of this year.

jcg/msh (AP, dpa)