Mickey Mouse is clearly a mouse, and Daffy is a duck, but you might be surprised to learn that Goofy, originally Dippy Dawg, is not exactly a dog. The easily identifiable dog on the show is Mickey’s pet, Pluto, who walks on all fours, has a leash, lives in a doghouse, and does not speak, unlike Goofy.
There have been debates about whether Goofy is a cow, especially due to his on-and-off romance with Clarabelle Cow. Goofy’s longtime voice actor, Bill Farmer, spoke to Yahoo Entertainment in a recent chat to clear the air on his character’s identity. The question of what Goofy is was, of course, a moment of debate in the 1987 film Stand by Me.
Goofy’s Goofy
Bill stated categorically, “Goofy is not a dog,” which raises the question of what animal he is. “Pluto is a dog, but Goofy seems to be in the canine family in the same way that a wolf is not a dog, but they also are in the canine family,” Bill, who has been the character’s voice since 1987, said. “I think Canis Goofus is the technical Latin term for what Goofy is.”
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Goofy is certainly from the canine family; however, he is— simply put, “just Goofy.” Bill also admitted to going for Mickey’s voice at first before landing his current role. “I thought I did a pretty good Mickey Mouse. I can’t do Donald Duck very well. But Goofy was right in the wheelhouse,” he revealed. “They liked that one, and since 1987, I’ve been the official voice.”
More clarification
In 1992’s Goof Troop, Goofy played dad to naughty young Max, and fans found their father-and-son dynamic so relatable that they would stop to tell Bill how it helped their parental relationships. Bill starred in A Goofy Movie three years later, which remains a fan favorite today.
The voice actor further clarifies the conspiracy about Goofy based on his romantic relations with other characters. “We don’t know who Max’s mother was,” he shared. “But I have my own theories: I think Goofy was married to Jessica Rabbit before Roger.”