Sep 16, 2026 · 9 min · 9 segments
This week I talk about the one, the only, Jimothy the raccoon! All episodes are researched, written, read, and audio engineered by me, Daisy Fiore. Follow me on Facebook and YouTube at…
Daisy FioreHost
And the internet is ablaze with posts calling him Seattle's new cryptid and comparing him to other cryptids.
So who is Jimothy? Unless you live under a rock or have made the very good decision to stay off social media, you've probably seen the memes, the videos, and the pics of a funky little raccoon with a very short body and long gangly legs wandering around the Seattle suburb of Ballard.
At first, people asked whether Jimothy had some sort of injury, but after videos surfaced of him as a baby with the same weird little body and shape, the prevailing theory became that he has something called short spine syndrome.
It is rumored to appear in cats and cows, but it is exceptionally rare in anything but dogs, making Jimothy pretty unique.
Short spine syndrome is a poorly understood condition and may actually be an umbrella for multiple ways in which the spine develops improperly, causing the vertebra to either stay cartilaginous, fail to fuse, or fail to develop correctly.
This leads to a spine that does not elongate and develop flexibility between the vertebra.
Animals with this condition have a short hunched spine leading to the very round shape that has made Jimothy famous.
They also have less flexibility and may not be able to adequately turn their heads or twist their backs.
In dogs, if they live past infancy, they can have a relatively normal lifespan just with some limitations.
Obviously, in a wild animal, their limited mobility can make them vulnerable to predators, cars, or other issues that might shorten their lifespan.
And the internet is ablaze with posts calling him Seattle's new cryptid and comparing him to other cryptids.
So who is Jimothy? Unless you live under a rock or have made the very good decision to stay off social media, you've probably seen the memes, the videos, and the pics of a funky little raccoon with a very short body and long gangly legs wandering around the Seattle suburb of Ballard.
At first, people asked whether Jimothy had some sort of injury, but after videos surfaced of him as a baby with the same weird little body and shape, the prevailing theory became that he has something called short spine syndrome.
It is rumored to appear in cats and cows, but it is exceptionally rare in anything but dogs, making Jimothy pretty unique.
Short spine syndrome is a poorly understood condition and may actually be an umbrella for multiple ways in which the spine develops improperly, causing the vertebra to either stay cartilaginous, fail to fuse, or fail to develop correctly.
This leads to a spine that does not elongate and develop flexibility between the vertebra.
Animals with this condition have a short hunched spine leading to the very round shape that has made Jimothy famous.
They also have less flexibility and may not be able to adequately turn their heads or twist their backs.
In dogs, if they live past infancy, they can have a relatively normal lifespan just with some limitations.
Obviously, in a wild animal, their limited mobility can make them vulnerable to predators, cars, or other issues that might shorten their lifespan.
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