Raccoons don't jump or have the haunches and thick shins of kangaroos.
Posted on 04/02/2014 9:23:39 PM PDT by Rebelbase
RATCLIFFE, Texas — Deep in the back woods of South Texas, you never know what might be lurking around the corner, or in your tree.
“He saw this strange animal up here eating corn,” Jackie Stock said.
In Ratcliffe, a small town in DeWitt County, residents are certain they've found the mythical, despicable chupacabra, and this time, it's alive.
Ratcliffe Resident Jackie Stock said her husband caught the creature Sunday night.
“He called me to come and look, and I said ‘Bubba that looks like a baby chupacabra,’” Stock said.
With its hairless back, large claws, countless teeth and ferocious growl, many would say this animal fits the bill.
“I hunted coons for 20 years with dogs and I ain’t ever seen anything that looks like that right there,” Ratcliffe resident Arlen Parma said.
Parma said one of the biggest signs it's not a raccoon is its growl.
“A coon doesn’t make that noise, or a possum. What makes that noise? I guess a chupacabra does,” Parma said.
Most people in DeWitt County are convinced this is the elusive chupacabra, but what do wildlife experts have to say?
“The animal in the cage as best I can tell from the view is some sort of a small canine,” Brent Ortego, Wildlife Diversity Biologist with Texas Parks and Wildlife, said.
Ortego said a canine can include a coyote, dog, or even a fox. He said the animal most likely has mange which has caused it to lose its hair. But as for a chupacabra, he thinks otherwise.
“It's never been proven to be a unique species. It was always something out there that allegedly was said to cause harm to people or livestock,” Ortego said.
Chupacabra or not, right now this little guy is staying at the Stock household, living off a diet of cat food and corn, at least until someone can find out what it really is.
“We were just trying to figure out what it is because we've never seen anything like it before,” Stock said.
Whatever it is, do not try to pet or hand feed it.
Petting, no, only with a long toothbrush.
Exciting new find, with an oral history of hundreds of years with the Mexicans.
The so-called Montauk Monster ended up being a raccoon carcass.
Yeah i googled it....there are a whole bunch of raccoon chupa’s.....
Hairless raccoon.
Raccoons don't jump or have the haunches and thick shins of kangaroos.
It. Has. FINGERS.
I have NO idea WTF that is.
But I want one.
It is a coon.
LOL.....OK....but it’s still a coon...
The guy who says he never heard a coon growl like that has never dealt with a rabid one.
Oh yes they do.
Coon.
I want one too!
It is clearly sentient. Some de-worming, coat restoration (has a boar’s coat), nutritional therapy, collect the estrus (I sense it’s a female) to trap a male and breed them where it was trapped.
I'd say a better body match would be a coatimundi, a "slinkier" form of coon; coons have a more 'bearlike' body. Still a horrid case of mange, no matter what it is. DNA should not a problem here, and would be definitive.
Where this was trapped is on the extreme fringe of its range, so wouldn't expect locals to be familiar with them.
Mostly foxes.
Buy some Nu-Stock.
It works like you won’t believe.
If the mange is not contagious, it’s demodectic.
If it’s demodectic and your dog is having sporadic outbreaks, it’s most likely auto-immune and any type of cortisone suppresses immune function.
Honky.
US Post Office
100 Texas 7
Ratcliff, TX 75858
It’s at Ratcliff Lake & Rec Area in the Davy Crockett National Forest...about 20-25 miles west of Lufkin.
Coatimundi have short, stubby ears.. this guy has fox ears.
Wow...you’ve really got this planned out!
I’d breed for the hairless gene, myself.
:)
That was my first guess but the ears are the deal breaker.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.