Many people believe that giraffe's don't really exist.

This page examines the origin, history and memes surrounding this particular group.

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The first known instance of a human being questioning the actual existence of giraffe's in modern society was in a 2006 video uploaded to the internet titled "Giraffe's Don't Exist" by Steve Ibsen.

In the video, Steve states that giraffes were invented by the British as the result of a prideful boast.

The scenario he describes is that three hunters were on safari and in an attempt to one-up the other two who had shot lions and bears, one of the brits makes up a story about a ridiculous creature that can eat leaves off of trees.

He argues that if giraffes exist then why doesn't anyone know what noise they make?

He simply refuses to believe thst giraffes exist.

Steve Ibsen is most well known for his absurd and joyful "Kitty Cat Dance" meme.

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The meme stayed circulating on the outskirts of popular culture as is shown from this 2010 forum query from a concerned biology teacher: ^[3]

"Greetings.

One of my high school biology students made the statement today that "Giraffes aren't real, it's a government cover-up."

When I asked her where on earth she got this idea she stated that "It's a long story".

Anyone out there have any idea what she is talking about?"

Later, in 2016 the idea popped up in an article on theodysseyonline that paraphrased Steve Ibsen's video with no attribution.

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On October 23rd 2017, blogger Jack Malvey expanded on the original concept in a post titled "The Truth Comes Out: Giraffes Are A Hoax."

He says the story dates back to 1836 when William Cornwallis Harris lied about slaying a fantastic beast in Africa.

Much like the American Jackalope, Harris threw together taxedermized parts to make an animal that looked like the myth he was describing.

The myth was then propagated by hunting agencies looking to profit off of waves of hopeful "beast hunters."

Malvey also argues that they don't make biological sense.

Any animal with a neck that big would have been wiped out by lightning storms.

He also suggests that the creatures aren't ergonomically situated to birth a calf: ^[7]

"Additionally, giraffes are theoretically placental mammals.

They give birth to live young.

However, there’s a logistical problem with that: Because of how their legs are connected to the body, giraffes are unable to crouch, so any offspring would have to drop to the ground at birth.

A six-foot fall for a newborn calf with twigs for legs and a lightning-rod neck?

Death is practically a guarantee."

Malvey dismisses any existing giraffe sightings as animatronic.

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In 2016, a subreddit popped up called r/giraffesdontexist.

The threads are satire, but approached with a deadly serious attitude.

People seem genuinely irked about a possible government cover-up involving the existence of giraffes.

Any existing mentions of giraffes in text books or television are deemed propoganda.

The subreddit hit 100,000 followers in late August of 2019.

The icon was drawn by u/Fishcat076 who has an active presence on Xavion.net and the subreddit is moderated by u/Inglebird165, u/meepingchicken , and u/Oroknfoit.