Leda ManosUsers across social media have been pouring out their condolences, love and disbelief, spreading word that Jiffpom, a beloved Pomeranian and influencer may be dead.
As of time of writing, no official word has been released on whether the claims are true on the diminutive dog’s Instagram, which boasts 9.5 million followers, making him one of the biggest animal stars on the platform.
The page was routinely updated about once a week until February 20th of this year, but nothing has been posted since then, fueling the speculation that the rumors may be true. This a post from Jiffpom’s official account from earlier this year:
View this post on Instagram
Nothing has been posted since February on Jiffpom’s TikTok either, which counts 20.5 million followers, and was routinely updated as well.
Some users pointed out that people may be confusing Jiffpom with Boo, another Pomeranian that died in 2019. BBC reported then that Boo’s owners claimed the dog “died of a broken heart,” stating the dog started to show “signs of heart problems ever since his “best friend” – a dog called Buddy – died in 2017.”
For comparison, this is Boo, who does bear a resemblance to Jiffpom:
View this post on Instagram
According to him IMDB page, Jiffpom’s date of birth is Feb. 26, 2010, which would make his age 12 in “human years” or in his mid- to late-60s in “dog years.” The dogfluencer is also an actor with five credits listed on IMDB, including showing off his cool moves in Katy Perry’s “Dark Horse” music video.
It’s no doubt that people love the presence of pets on social media, with some users clearly developing attachment to the pets they’ve only seen on their screens. On Jiff’s latest Instagram post, user m.akaylaaaa__ stated as much: “aww baby i’ve followed you since 2015 💔”
A 2016 survey from petcare giant Mars Petcare US found some interesting facts about animals on social media, noting that “about 65 percent of pet owners post about their furry friends on social media an average of two times per week” and of the pet owners that have created a social media account for their pets, about half say “their pets get more social attention than they do.”
We will keep you updated if news develops on whether Jiffpom is dead or alive, but in the meantime, we can keep up hope that this internet rumor is just that — a rumor.
Advertising disclosure: We may receive compensation for some of the links in our stories. Thank you for supporting LA Weekly and our advertisers.