Chupacabra or Dog Shot and Killed in Texas

This dog is called a Mexican Hairless...it is OFTEN mistaken for Cryptos...but it is not fairly well known. Similar to the bat that's mistaken for the Jersey Devil (though that was just a theory of one of our members...but one I tend to agree with).

The Mexican Hairless is known though...

www.hund.ch...

Yep, this is likely the one seen elsewhere too, but the other just might be a coyote with mange (or another disease) as mentioned below

[edit on 29-7-2004 by Gazrok]

I finally got the video to play and after seeing a closeup of it i would guess the coyote with mange is a pretty good one.

Coyote with mange

www.bjacked.net...

note the round ears

www.wildcarewildlife.ca...

The only thing that still puzzles me is the spots on its sides, ive never seen a spotted coyote but who knows they could exist and on the other hand those spots could just be sores.

Anyone notice that it looks a lot like this old pic?

www.cryptozoology.com...

(it is the middle picture in the bottom row.)

Its tail isnt a coyote. Coyotes have longer tails. Its most likley an dog possibly the taco bell chihuahua.

[edit on 29-7-2004 by Vegemite]

The latest theories are it is Muntjac deer, however there are some discrepancies with the description.

According to the Rolling Hills Zoo in Kansas, "as Muntjacs mature, the upper canine teeth are elongated into 'tusks' that curve outward from the lips." Also, "Muntjac deer are sometimes known as the 'barking deer' because they will emit a barking sound to warn others of predators and to identify individuals." Some interesting canine comparisons.

Concerning the dead chickens at the Elmendorf farm, Muntjac deer are actually herbivores. But remember, Mcanally says he found the creature eating mulberries. And a British web site says the deer are very territorial, using their canine "tusk" teeth on intruders, to inflict "serious injuries... to their flanks, neck and ears." Perceived chicken intruders, perhaps?

But there are some questions to ask about the deer theory. On the web sites we searched, the pictures of Muntjac deer don't indicate a long tail. The pictures from Elmendorf show that creature's tail is quite long, almost rat-like. Also, Muntjacs, just like other deer, have split hoofs. It's hard to tell from the pictures if our strange animal had hooves, or some kind of paw. We haven't gotten a chance to ask Mcanally yet.

Of course all of these are just theories at this point.

Full Story

....notice how these stories all start with a zoologist or wildlife biologist flatly stating that it is almost certainly a dog[a grey fox in another recent case] with severe mange. No confusion about it. But then the media gets a hold of it, and we start playing theory by democracy, and everyone has to come up with a pet theory a little goofier than everyone elses. Some one will point out that it resmbles some extinct animal, if you give them enough time. In theory by democracy, all dead dogs and cats that look a little icky are chupacabras. There is not a conspiracy of biologists to lie to you about the Chupa. Dogs really get mange, so do coyotes and foxes, it looks really gross, and dried out cats look kinda creepy, too. Nothing to get excited about.

According to vets in Maryland, they have identified the mystery animal as a red fox with mange. A witness caught the wild animal in a humane trap and then took it to the vet.

GLYNDON, Md. -- The mystery may be over as one of the creatures roaming through central Maryland was finally captured on Saturday.

According to the veterinarians at Falls Road Animal Hospital, the animal was a male red fox. However, Dr. Michael Herko -- a vet at the animal hospital -- and the man who caught the fox say it is not the mysterious creature videotaped in July, but a relative.

www.thewbalchannel.com...

Originally posted by William One Sac
No, the video doesnt show the animal being killed, but does have better pictures of it. I am curious as to the rancher stating the animal was eating mulberries. I know dogs will eat grass when they need to throw up, but mulberries?

For the record, I have a black lab and he does eat grass, but he also eat all kinda of fruits and veggies. About the only thing he wont eat is lettuce. In fact he ate my enbtire crop of green beans that where growing in my planter once he discovered they tasted good. So mulberries is not out of the question of a dog.

That really IS a muntjac...I've seen the deer alive in person before. They do have a tail, usually over a half a foot long, they just tend to keep it tucked under.
Muntjac was the first thing I thought when I saw it, too.

The real question is, why does it have no hair? There is a form of mange that can effect deer, but the hair is usually lost due to uncontrollable scratching, with mange. It's hard to imagine it could be that thorough...all this animal's hair is gone, except along its spine. It's probably also rather thin.

A coyote with mange this bad would hardly be able to stand, yet it was eating berries? Odd choice.
If you compare the coyote with this animal, you'll see that the lower canines of the coyote are quite prominent, yet this animal has only the two protruding upper canines that you would expect to see on a muntjac. They are not overly long, but it's clearly a juvenile or doe.

Here's an adult male musk deer: www.ultimateungulate.com...

Some species of musk deer also seems a possibility, given the animal's appearance (though probably not the specific species in the above photo).

The tail does present a problem. It is difficult to determine how long the animal's tail actually is, from the photo. But it does seem terribly long for a deer. However, all the photos we've been shown are of Reeve's muntjacs, and there is a species called the black muntjac which is stated to have a longer tail.

Muntjac's head:
bioweb.uwlax.edu...

Dead muntjac:
hsa.enviroweb.org...

Roe deer: www.roedeerhunting.com...

So, I would not rule out a deer.

The animal that was shot is going to be dug up and have its dna tested...

Instead of questioning his claims, a national foundation is testing the creature. The Communion Foundation is interested in all things unexplained. They will exhume McAnally's creature and send it out for DNA testing.

We talked to the founder, Whitley Strieber. (my emphasis)

Whitley Strieber! Holy cow!


Chupacabra? Exhuming the Elmendorf Beast

sarcoptic mange will cause the hair to fall out completely and it doesnt require the animal to scratch at all , it is also known as scabies.

oh and muntjac came to mind when i saw this thread originally however muntjacs arent carnivores they are herbivores and from what the article has stated this creature killed this mans chickens. However it is possible that another animal killed the chickens and this animal wandered in and took the blame as well as the bullet.

As for if the animal is a muntjac the question is how did it get there, well i can easily explain that. The lower part of the US especially the texas , arkansas, and oklahoma area are litterally loaded down with exotic animal breeders. The market within these states is well over 4 times the market in the upper portion of the US and escapes happen. I know that thanks to a screw up on my buddies part sika deer are now native in KY . The first year there where only 3 of them then the next year a group of 5 where spotted, the next 8 and thats been 5 years ago so do the math.

Too much media attention?!?

�I've had a number of biologists look at that picture of the creature and no one - so far - has come up with a definitive identity for it,� says Strieber. �There have been some ideas, but so far we haven't seen anything that is definitive. And so we are interested and hopeful that we have the excitement of finding something really new.�

So now there�s no word on when the researchers will make it out to Elmendorf to exhume the animal. McAnally tells WOAI that the time and date will not be announced, but the DNA test results will be released once they are available.

LINK

That is one ugly dog = /

Chupacabra

mmmmmm NO, no lang nails and a bit to small sorry
Actually this was reported on CNN's morning brodcast yesterday it actually is a fox that has scabies. just thought I would bring light to something that was tending to go off in a area of a mysterious type creature.

Nah, it's the other "creature" that was sighted in the States that turned out to be a fox with mange. Not the one we're talking about in this thread.

any new updates? dna testing done?

The dna testing is underway. It will take 6 weeks for identification. The animal decayed much faster than expected.

Some believe this mystery mammal could be the chupacabra, the blood sucking animal of popular Mexican folklore. Macanally says whether it is, he just hopes he gets to name it and that it will stop eating his chickens. He plans to take the rest of the remains to the zoo in hopes they can identify it. Other labs across the country and the world have been contacting him trying to find out what this really is.

Link

The San Antonio news sensastionalistic? NO WAY! (YES WAY, TED!)
I live in San Antonio, and let me tell you... a four newscasts will do anything to get people to watch... like an expose on jaywalking (not kidding) Anyway, haven't really been following this story, just wanted to let you know that anything you see in the SA media is probably not your
best source of information.

Looks like an emaciated dog to me. About the mulberries, my Boxer likes bananas, so it's not altogether impossible

-Becs