Giant Rabbit Attack? Update on Mohawk Incident
Posted by: Loren Coleman on April 3rd, 2007
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Mr. Charles Kader of the St Regis Mohawk Tribe has forwarded this official press release, “Animal Attack on Vehicle – Akwesasne Mohawk Territory.”
Media Statement
St. Regis Mohawk Tribe
Environment Division
Subject: Reported Damage to Automobile by Unknown Animal: Sample Results
On Ennisko:wa/March 21, 2007 Mr. Adrian McDonald reported that his mother’s automobile had been severely damaged and that the Tribal Police and New York State Police had made an investigation. The damage occurred at the residence of Mrs. Edith McDonald, Cook Road, Akwesasne. Police initially speculated that an animal had caused the damage.
Mr. McDonald brought in several pieces of damaged parts that were stained with blood, and contained remnants of tissue and hair. The environment division collected several samples including more damaged automobile pieces stained with blood. Cotton swabs were used to collect blood and tissue samples. Photographs were made of the damage.
The photographs and samples were submitted to the office of Ward B. Stone, NYSDEC Wildlife Pathologist for examination. His initial examination indicated that a dog with powerful jaws and strong neck, such as a pit bull likely caused the damage to the automobile. The hair sample was determined to be that of a cottontail rabbit.
Mr. Stone has since detailed the most likely scenario to have been that a rabbit was the stimulus to the actions of a dog that resulted in the damage. The rabbit may either have taken shelter in the wheel well or was wedged after being hit by the car. In either case, the dog trying to get to the rabbit did the damage. Mr. Stone in his correspondence to the Environment Division stated, “It was a medium-sized dog with tremendous jaw and neck power. This [damage] and the tooth structures make a pit bull the likely source of the damage.”
This was an unfortunate occurrence that caused severe damage and loss to a community member’s property. If someone in the neighborhood is harboring the dog that caused the damage, the authorities ask that the owner step forward and take responsibility.Les Benedict, St. Regis Mohawk Tribe, Environment Division, Akwesasne, NY
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About Loren Coleman
Loren Coleman is one of the world’s leading cryptozoologists, some say “the” leading living cryptozoologist. Certainly, he is acknowledged as the current living American researcher and writer who has most popularized cryptozoology in the late 20th and early 21st centuries.
Starting his fieldwork and investigations in 1960, after traveling and trekking extensively in pursuit of cryptozoological mysteries, Coleman began writing to share his experiences in 1969. An honorary member of Ivan T. Sanderson’s Society for the Investigation of the Unexplained in the 1970s, Coleman has been bestowed with similar honorary memberships of the North Idaho College Cryptozoology Club in 1983, and in subsequent years, that of the British Columbia Scientific Cryptozoology Club, CryptoSafari International, and other international organizations. He was also a Life Member and Benefactor of the International Society of Cryptozoology (now-defunct).
Loren Coleman’s daily blog, as a member of the Cryptomundo Team, served as an ongoing avenue of communication for the ever-growing body of cryptozoo news from 2005 through 2013. He returned as an infrequent contributor beginning Halloween week of 2015.
Coleman is the founder in 2003, and current director of the International Cryptozoology Museum in Portland, Maine.
Not surprising. I said that the tissue samples would likely be prey remains, not whatever did this, and we are really left none the wiser. Could be a big dog, could be coyotes, could be a bear…
that’s one reason I prefer the classic cars–harder to damage.
Do they need to get the Holy Hand Grenade of Antioch, or have I been watching too much television?
Old Tirebiter strikes again.
Was the fender on this car made of fiberglass?
If in fact it was a Pitbull, it’s just another example of how dangerous these animals are.
IMO this breed should be outlawed.
Yes, it is fiberglass.
Who knows, maybe the Easter Bunny ran amok? 🙂
Instead of a pit bull maybe its a pitbunny!
Regards
Oh no! a giant pitbunny , quick someone call Biscardi.
We need Pit Bulls to control our Borders.
Like Elmer Fudd used to say, “Shhhhhhh! Weoooh hunting Wabbits!”
OK, now if you look real close at the center vertical break/tear and then go about half the way up from the bottom, let your eyes do what they do and you’ll see a very small pink Wabbit, er, Rabbit setting and looking to the right of the frame with his big ears up and high. That is the only logical reason a large animal would attack a vehicle, it saw the Rabbit and went for it!
No doubt just an anomaly in the undercoating as the material split, but it does look like a Rabbit!
Best regards and don’t eat too many ‘Peeps’ TM next weekend!
Silly rabbit tricks, err, cars are for kids! Seriously though, any dog that can do damage like that ought to be monitored 24hrs a day. Alot of people WANT these kind of dogs but they don’t want the responsibility of one. That is of course if it was actually a dog.
Nee ! Is this the same rabbit that attacked Jimmy Carter several years ago ??? Run away ! Run away !
It seems disappointing to me that they assume its a pit. There are several breeds that could be responsible for this. It saddens me. Why assume a pit? Why not a rotty or a boxer, or an american bulldog? Or any other terrier or bully breeds or mastiff? Why a pit?
Night of the Lepus!
holy moly – look at that damage! that poor poor rabbit…
Why not a bear? Bear eat rabbits, Pits don’t have them on their regular prey list unless it’s “Bunny Bites” in a can, new from Purina! Bears will shred anything to get at prey and it only seems the most obvious explanation. Hey, let’s attribute it to the imaginary Chupacabra and get the press reporting on it with that cliche “wink and a nudge” anomaly report they always save for the last two minutes of the broadcast.
im from around area and there is wolves or coydogs or wolfmix and it could be possible from the damage of the car could be a pack of them! taking turns ! or i could be a limmikin or limikkin as spelled differntly and alot of ways. we had a wolf captured months ago
very unique he looked more like a Alaskan Wolf then timber very nice looking he was caught but escaped a still locked cage and that in it self is a mystery
google it captured wolf Akwesasne you see how nice looking he is !