Mystery of the Chupacabra SOLVED!

Came across a hilarious, and thought-provoking, article on Yahoo!News: Residents report sightings of “El Chupacabra”.

Apparently an odd creature has not only been spotted but FILMED (and for once SUPER clearly!) roaming a neighborhood in Picayune, Mississippi.

As one resident so poetically (and hilariously) described it: “If a zombie had a dog, it would look like that.”

Oh my.

Admittedly, after seeing the footage of the “creature,” it does sort of look like a zombie dog I saw for sale on SpiritHalloween.com.

But what really stood out to me was what Master Sergeant David Burnette of the Mississippi Department of Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks said, “The way they described it to me, it’s a coyote really bad awful with mange.”

For me, that’s it. Mystery of the Chupacabra solved. Not just this “chupacabra” in Mississippi either, but any of them.

It’s all just been a case of mis-identification. Most likely what people have really seen is some kind of scroungy coyote.

“But what about the blood sucking part of it, Courtney? How do you explain that?”

The Chupacabra legend is a contemporary one. Depending which source you rely on, the first Chupacabra report came from Puerto Rico in 1995. (I also remember hearing it started in the 1970s in Mexico, but most sources cite its origins as coming from Puerto Rico.)

Eight sheep were discovered dead with three puncture wounds in each chest. Allegedly all had been bled dry, but they technically weren’t.

I’m thinking the blood-sucking part could be a few things:

• In some cases the puncture wounds have been in the neck. Biologists consulted on Chupacabra cases have said that such punctures are consistent with canine canines. If a coyote wasn’t strong or healthy enough to complete the kill, he could do enough damage to where his prey survived long enough to get away but eventually bled to death. (The only thing troubling about this theory explaining some of the attacks was there then should be a trail of blood, but none has ever been reported.)
• Hoax. People wanting to perpetuate the Chupacabra myth make the kills.

For me, I’ve never been a believer in the Chupacabra. (Whereas I do believe in the possibility of Bigfoot and the Loch Ness Monster. Although, even those I believe have less supernatural and more natural origin explanations. I believe Bigfoot is either a hybrid or some sort of great ape and Nessie is some kind of dinosaur that managed to survive or hibernate or somehow be resurrected. Only nature might ever know the answer to that, though.)

But this latest Chupacabra sighting just reinforces my belief it doesn’t exist and is really just a canine with bad skin.

Courtney Mroch

Courtney Mroch is a globe-trotting restless spirit who’s both possessed by wanderlust and the spirit of adventure, and obsessed with true crime, horror, the paranormal, and weird days. Perhaps it has something to do with her genes? She is related to occult royalty, after all. Marie Laveau, the famous Voodoo practitioner of New Orleans, is one of her ancestors. (Yes, really! As explained here.) That could also explain her infatuation with skeletons.

Speaking of mystical, to learn how Courtney channeled her battle with cancer to conjure up this site, check out HJ’s Origin Story.