Unfortunately, Granpa died just 34 days after that article had appeared. In noting his passing, the Austin American-Statesman began, "Grandpa Rexs Allen, possibly the oldest cat in the United States at 33, died Wednesday morning at his Austin home. His owner said the cause of death was pneumonia." The article also mentioned that "Perry had hoped to get Grandpa into the Guinness Book of Records. The oldest cat in that book is an English feline that died at 34. Perry still thinks Grandpa may get into the book - he said he might have miscalculated the cat's age, and Grandpa may have been 34 already."

Eager to learn how Granpa, who had been a reported 26 and an estimated 31 in 1996, had gotten to be 33 just two years later, Cats & Kittens spoke with Jake Perry last spring. "The cat magazine estimated Granpa's age as 31, said Perry, "because I didn't send them his papers. When they called, I said, 'Well, do you want me to send his papers'; but they said, 'No. That's OK.'"