General area.

I got the following report in a couple days ago. While the people submitting the report do not refer to the dog like animal as a Shunka Warakin, it sure sounds like one. I have taken in a couple other reports of an unknown dog like animal from Iowa, could this be the same creature? Here is the report.

- Start Report -

Name: Diane & Roger ******

Email Address: on file

State: Iowa

County: Audubon

Date of Sighting: July, 2nd,  2015

Time of Day: around 4:00  in the afternoon.

Nearest Town: Elk Horn, Iowa

Length of Sighting: three minutes

How many Witnesses: two

Any Photos/Videos: no

Describe sighting in detail:

We were coming home from shopping on the gravel road Falcon Ave.  We were only a mile and a half from home when my husband said, What's that?  I looked out the window and saw a strange animal in the ditch.
The animal looked dark gray and tan, mostly dark gray, had large pointed ears, and a long snout.  It's shape was like a hyena and it ran with a different gait than a coyote or dog.  We watched it run under the fence and up a waterway to a terrace at top of hill.  Animal kept looking back as it ran which gave us a good look at shape of head and body.  Body and gait were shape of a hyena.
We reported this to sheriff at the time.  No tracks were found as ground was too dry and hard.

- End Report -

Now, the other reports can be found HERE and HERE. I used google maps to check how close the two counties, where the sightings took place, are to each other. The first two reports came from Van Buren county and this report comes from Audubon county. They are not close together at all. So, could there be a growing population of these critters in the state of Iowa? It may just mean that, and if so there might be more reports in the future.

As for this report, I sent the people a picture of the taxidermy Shunka Warakin in the picture below. I ask them if what they seen looked like it. I have not gotten a reply yet, but will update this post if I do.

The Shunka Warakin -
is an animal mentioned in American folklore that is said to resemble a wolf, a hyena, or both. According to cryptozoologist Loren Coleman, shunka warak'in is an Ioway term meaning "carries off dogs". Coleman suggested that the creature was some animal unknown to modern sources.

Here is a possible Shunka Warakin mounted. It was shot in 1886 by Ammon Hutchins in Montana and is the only possible physical evidence of the creature.

© Lance Foster 2009

!!UPDATE!!

I just heard back from the witness in regards to the picture I sent them of the stuffed Shunka Warakin (pictured above) and here is what they said.

"Yes, similar in color, a little darker and thicker hair, larger snout, but it's back was more pronounced, coming down at an angle from front shoulders to it's rear, showing front to be much higher than the rear, just like a hyena. It also had a gallop like a hyena when it ran, not like a coyote or dog."

!!!!! End UPDATE !!!!!!!!!!!


Thanks
~Tom~


This post by Thomas Marcum, Thomas is the founder/leader of the cryptozoology and paranormal research organization known as The Crypto Crew. Over 20 years experience with research and investigation of unexplained activity, working with video and websites. A trained wild land firefighter and a published photographer, and poet



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