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SEATTLE - A fan page for the viral sensation, Jimothy the raccoon, is urging people not to share the animal's exact location after multiple death threats were made toward him in the past week.
What we know:
On Sunday, the fan page took to social media and accused four people of making threats toward Jimothy in the past week.
According to the page, one person wrote that seeing Jimothy be fed to a coyote would "bring me joy." Another person wrote that it's time to put Jimothy "out of his misery."
The person behind the fan page said that the latter comment was reported to law enforcement.
The page wrote that sharing the animal's location in posts, comments, or videos poses more of a threat to his safety than some may realize.
Who is 'Jimothy'? Why a Seattle raccoon has gone viral
He's small, he's round, and he's gone viral. "Jimothy" the racoon has been spotted in Ballard, and he's amassed millions of views.
What they're saying:
"Whether these psychopaths are truly violent or more of the "edgelord" kind, it doesn't matter. I'm not taking any chances with people who are comfortable to say things like this on a public forum with all their details public," the page wrote.
The backstory:
Jimothy is a raccoon with short spine syndrome who has been spotted roaming around Seattle's Ballard neighborhood. A myriad of videos of the miniature mammal have been posted online, which have amassed millions of views.
The Internet fan-favorite appears to have a spine deformity, giving him a significantly smaller torso compared to most raccoons. The condition is likely Short Spine Syndrome, which compresses the vertebrae and makes it appear as if he has no neck.
As his popularity has grown, so have questions about his story, including whether the same raccoon has been spotted for years, or if there could be more than one animal with a similar spinal deformity.
Dig deeper:
Animal keeper Wendi Mallo spoke with FOX 13 at the height of Jimothy's fame, and said the raccoon's biggest impact may be changing the way people think about wildlife that shares their neighborhoods.
"People often don’t like animals that are too successful and surprisingly in their backyard," said Mallo.
She said Jimothy has sparked a different reaction.
"There’s definitely a visceral response when you see a video of Jimothy, its pretty impactful," she remarked.
Mallo said urban raccoons face significant challenges, including cars and dogs, and encouraged people to admire wildlife from a distance rather than approaching it or feeding it.
The Source: Information for this story came from previous reporting by FOX 13 Seattle and the Jimothy the Raccoon Facebook page.
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