OK, let me set the record straight before I write any more…there are no chupacabras. The chupacabra, sort of a canine version of Bigfoot, is a myth.
The chupacabra story is popular in this part of the country with occasional sightings and the infrequent shooting when a rancher finds one near his herds. (Don’t let me get started on that topic…) A snapshot or two has been taken but, like Bigfoot himself, the chupacabra remains elusive. Translated, chupacabra means “goat sucker” from what is believed to be the mythical creature’s need to drink the blood of goats. Again let me say it: there are no chupacabras. It’s believed that the chupacabra sightings can be explained as simply coyotes with a severe case of mange.
But I saw one.
I was headed to the grocery store, driving past a local limestone quarry. It was Saturday morning so the quarry activities were at a standstill.
Suddenly, out from the quarry ran what I thought at first was a large dog. I hit the brakes and the canine ran safely across the road.
And then I noticed that this was, most likely, no dog. Completely hairless (but not in a slick way like a Xolo), the 50-poundish canine was covered in bumps and scabs. He was also cloaked in dust, probably from rolling in the caliche to try to relieve his itching. Dark-skinned (but, again, not in an even way like a Xolo), he had prick ears, a long tail, and was just a little smaller than our Tiki. But something about the way the animal moved, sauntering more from the shoulders, seemed wild rather than domesticated to me.
I pulled my car over, got out and tried to call the animal, figuring if he were a dog with severe mange that hopefully he’d come to me. Our vet is just about a mile from where I stopped so I thought I could always take him by there for treatment.
Instead, the animal took off in the woods, never looking back. I stayed for a while, sitting quietly, hoping he’d return, but he never did. I left a little piece of my heart on the road that day, sad for the animal who had to be in great discomfort from his skin condition.
There have been other recent sightings of these animals in our area as people continue to look for the chupacabra. I have only one hope: that everyone remembers that canines, coyotes, chupacabras…and compassion…are not mutually exclusive words.
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