Caged “Chupacabra” Euthanized
Posted by: Craig Woolheater on April 8th, 2014
We talked about this here on Cryptomundo last week: “Chupacabra” Caged
But as Nick Redfern posited back in January here on Cryptomundo, The Chupacabras: Which One?, why are people even calling this a “Chupacabra”?
Well, the couple that trapped the “Chupacabra” have put it down.
Couple who claimed they caught a live chupacabra, chooses to have the animal euthanized
The animal had a hairless back, large teeth, and an unusual growl. Some commenters speculated that the creature’s behavior of holding food with its front paws proved it was most likely a hairless raccoon or porcupine. They pointed to a November 2011 Vero News report about Florida’s Vero Beach Animal Control, which caught and identified another mysterious animal as a hairless raccoon. The South Texas creature appeared to have physical characteristics similar to the Florida hairless raccoon.
But Arlen Parma, a fellow Ratcliffe resident, refuted the notion that the Stocks’ animal was a raccoon saying, “You know I hunted coons you know, 20 years with dogs and all that and I ain’t never seen nothing that looks like that right there.” Parma added that the beast had a distinctive growl. “Coon don’t make that noise, or a possum. What makes that noise? I guess the chupacabra does. I don’t know,” Parma told the station.
Wildlife Diversity Biologist Brent Ortego from Texas Parks and Wildlife told KAVU, “The animal in the cage as best I can tell from the view is some form of a small canine.” Ortego believed that it was highly likely the animal suffered from mange, which resulted in the animal’s hair loss. The biologist dismissed the theory that the animal was El Chupacabra and said, “It’s never been proven to be a unique species. It was always something out there that allegedly either caused harm or threatened to cause harm to people or their livestock.”
Since the first story by KAVU aired, the Stocks say people from across the country contacted them with questions about the mysterious creature. Because the Dewitt County Game Warden determined the animalto be a raccoon, on Thursday the couple was given 48 hours to either release the animal or euthanize it, or they would face fines. NBC News reported that on Friday, Mike Cox, spokesman for the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department said, “The land owner left a message on the warden’s voice mail this morning that the animal had been euthanized.” The spokesman said there would be no further actions taken and, “Our agency does not believe chupacabras exist anywhere but in the imaginations of some.”
Co-founder of Cryptomundo in 2005.
I have appeared in or contributed to the following TV programs, documentaries and films:
OLN's Mysterious Encounters: "Caddo Critter", Southern Fried Bigfoot, Travel Channel's Weird Travels: "Bigfoot", History Channel's MonsterQuest: "Swamp Stalker", The Wild Man of the Navidad, Destination America's Monsters and Mysteries in America: Texas Terror - Lake Worth Monster, Animal Planet's Finding Bigfoot: Return to Boggy Creek and Beast of the Bayou.
That is positively a raccoon with mange and other issues. I’ve seen some examples here in the park across from where I live. Take the fur/hair coat off most any mammal and they will present a very disturbing image. But it is the human brain’s desire for drama that turns these unfortunate animals from the cuties everyone loves into nightmare chupacabras – once they are no longer familiar in appearance. Then again a wolverine (not Logan) with mange really would be a nightmare.
Don’t know what it is, but I do know the guy from TX animal control is a MORON. What “canine” eats with its hands, genius?
Oh, and bubba, coons do make that sound:
So my guess is mangy raccoon.
“Countless teeth.” If you could count them, they’re definitely not countless. But it seems a tad large for a mangy raccoon. Never have I know of a raccoon of that size.
Unknown hybrid canid with mange. This is nothing like the creatures that were originally described, which were large, and looked like a strange reptile hybrid that stood on two legs. Someone is actively muddying the waters.
And for cryin’ out loud, it’s “Chupacabras”, not “Chupacabras”. Ignorance must be a virus of some sort; it spreads so rapidly.
Raccoons can get big. They can top out at over 25 lbs, when there is plenty of food and have been known to take pet cats and small dogs. Take a look at the skull of one to see a mouth full of varied mammalian teeth. I have seen mangy ones in person and that’s what they look like.
They can make a wide range of noises including; barks, yelps, growls. hisses, mewing and even a kind of purring. They also can howl and scream…a disturbing sound when you hear it and don’t know what it is. They are also intelligent and very inquisitive. They can open doors and unscrew jar caps and can drink from a bottle. But don’t ever come between a mother raccoon and her cubs…you will regret it. If you are unarmed, you will lose that confrontation.
You spelled chupacabras the same way twice…your point?