List of wealthiest animals
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The list of wealthiest animals in the world include animals that have inherited or earned over 1 million U.S. dollars.
Through inheritance
Non-human animals are not legal persons and cannot directly own property. Pets typically "inherit" money through a pet trust through which the money must be used for their care after the death of the owner.{{Cite magazine|url=https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2015/09/pet-will-fortune|title=What Happens When Someone Leaves Millions to a Pet?|last=Fox|first=Emily Jane|date=9 September 2015|magazine=Vanity Fair|language=en|access-date=21 May 2019|archive-date=21 September 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200921170856/https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2015/09/pet-will-fortune|url-status=live}}
Hoaxes
- Reportedly, Toby Rimes, a poodle, inherited $20 million from New Yorker Ella Wendel in 1931.{{cite web|url=https://www.businessinsider.com/these-are-some-of-the-the-richest-pets-in-the-world-2012-1|title=These Are Some Of The Richest Pets In The World|author=Tim Parker|work=Business Insider Australia|access-date=22 February 2016|archive-date=4 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304001640/http://www.businessinsider.com.au/these-are-some-of-the-the-richest-pets-in-the-world-2012-1|url-status=live}}{{cite web|url=https://finance.yahoo.com/news/the-world-s-top-4-richest-pets.html|title=The world's top 4 richest pets|date=6 January 2012|work=Yahoo! Finance|accessdate=22 February 2016|archive-date=3 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303080927/http://finance.yahoo.com/news/the-world-s-top-4-richest-pets.html|url-status=live}} In fact, it seems that no such bequest was made.{{Cite book|author=Mervin Rosenman|date=1984|title=Forgery, Perjury and an Enormous Fortune}}
- In 2021, the Associated Press and several other news organizations reported that a German Shepherd dog named Gunther VI inherited $400 million dollars from Countess Karlotta Leibenstein of Germany. The day after the Associated Press article, the New York Post published an article disputing the validity of the claim.{{Cite news |last=Gould |first=Jennifer |date=November 18, 2021 |title=No, stupid: A dog isn't really selling Madonna's former Florida mansion |work=New York Post |url=https://nypost.com/2021/11/18/a-dog-isnt-really-selling-madonnas-former-florida-mansion/ |access-date=January 3, 2023 |archive-date=January 3, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230103182942/https://nypost.com/2021/11/18/a-dog-isnt-really-selling-madonnas-former-florida-mansion/ |url-status=live }} The Associated Press later removed the article from its website and published a new article admitting the story was a fabrication.{{Cite news |last=Spencer |first=Terry |date=Nov 23, 2021 |title=Story about dog 'selling' mansion part of long-running tale |work=Orlando Sentinel |url=https://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/florida/fl-ne-dog-selling-mansion-stunt-20211124-ollf6w3zwvhidp3of7hkjn74ty-story.html |access-date=January 3, 2023 |archive-date=January 3, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230103182944/https://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/florida/fl-ne-dog-selling-mansion-stunt-20211124-ollf6w3zwvhidp3of7hkjn74ty-story.html |url-status=live }} The story of Gunther was featured in the 2023 Netflix documentary series Gunther's Millions.{{cite news | url=https://slate.com/culture/2023/02/gunthers-millions-netflix-worlds-richest-dog-true-story.html | title=The Biggest Lie in Netflix's Hit New Docuseries | work=Slate | date=February 1, 2023 | accessdate=June 25, 2023 | author=Goffe, Nadira | archive-date=May 10, 2023 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230510061057/https://slate.com/culture/2023/02/gunthers-millions-netflix-worlds-richest-dog-true-story.html | url-status=live }}