‘Jimothy’ the raccoon has short spine syndrome – but this condition can affect dogs, too

By Chris Tan, Associate Professor in Veterinary Surgery, University of Sydney

If you’ve been anywhere near the internet in recent days, you will likely have seen the viral footage of “Jimothy”: an unusually round raccoon in Seattle that hops and skips along in video filmed by local resident Kiana Hall.

This animal has a very rare congenital deformity called short spine syndrome, where the spine fails to develop properly in utero.

In fact, the condition can affect dogs, calves and other mammals – but is so vanishingly rare that in my entire career, having treated thousand and thousands of small animals, I have never seen a clinical case…

Read complete article

~	South Korea: Appeal decision for abortion case exposes legal vacuum

~	Ghana: Still no law criminalizing witchcraft accusations six years after Akua Denteh’s fatal lynching

~	Zambia: Authorities must free journalist arrested over social media posts

~	Grattan on Friday: One Nation’s spectre hangs over Labor national conference

~	Cuba: Exile of Afro-Cuban artist Luis Manuel Otero Alcántara underscores years of injustice

~	‘Like someone whacking a piñata’: orcas explode sunfish by ramming them at high speed

~	Employment surges in June, leaving the door open to further interest rate rises

~	How retirees, beachcombers and communities help scientists track everything from threatened species to algal blooms

~	At a time of harder borders and ‘ruthless’ rhetoric, the Refugee Convention is more important than ever

~	Will cough lozenges, syrups or medicated hot drinks make my cough go away?