The Chupacabra is a legendary creature that has been blamed for the death of thousands of cattle and other livestock throughout the western hemisphere, thought to be a mysterious creature with seemingly supernatural ability to not be apprehended despite its almost commonplace wholesale slaughter of animals. And after a particularly long string of sightings last week, one Dewitt County police officer has captured footage of a creature fitting its description, alive and in custody.
The creature, most commonly spotted in Texas, was captured early last week and kept under wraps for the most part while animal control officials attempted to discern exactly what the hairless creature was. In video footage it raised its front paws articulately as veterinary staff opened the door to its kennel and watched cautiously as a woman reached her gloved hand in toward the creature to pull it out to get a better look at it. It definitely fits the description given by many others who have reportedly found the creature dead. Of course it is still vastly different from the more traditional image of the Chupacabra which is often scaled with spiny like appendages on its back and massive red, black, or green eyes and the ability to leap vast distances away from its pursuers. As test analysis came back on the creature, several were shocked by the results.
The creature turned out to be nothing more than a simple raccoon with mange, leaving its body completely hairless. Given enough time, veterinary staff say, the creature will return to looking like a normal healthy furry raccoon. But in the meantime it’s easy to understand why staff were so apprehensive to label it as anything other than an unknown, as it looks bizarre to say the least. Prior to the discovery of its nature, it was labeled as the “Dry Gulch Chupacabra,” or affectionately called “Kojak” by local law enforcement. The scared hairless creature is listed in good condition, aside from its harrowing close encounter with humans in an unfamiliar environment and a bad case of mange which will in time heal itself. it was originally captured on the back porch of an Oklahoma man who wished to remain anonymous after bringing it in until the creature could be identified.
So this current case of the Chupacabra has been solved, but what of the others that have been discovered? Of course several of the dead bodies did turn out to be nothing more than coyotes, dogs, and various wildlife with mange. Still, a striking number remain unidentified. Of course this isn’t solely based on the lack of conclusive lab results, but also partially on the lack of funding for tests as well. To date there have been no documented cases of the roughly anthropomorphic Chupacabra being captured after being spotted. To date all cases of captured Chupacabras that have been studied have turned up either inconclusive results or turned out simply to be animals with mange. Perhaps the next one, however, will prove to be something quite different.