The Michigan Dogman.

The name alone strikes terror and fear in the hearts of…….well, no one, really.
Most of Michigan’s population hear these ‘tales’ and laugh it off or shrug it off or smirk it off.

So we've heard the stories about this thing...so what is it?

According to eyewitnesses who say they saw it, it looks like either a large dog that can stand on it's hind legs or a mutated human with a head shaped like a dog's (SEE PHOTO GALLERY BELOW w/ STILLS TAKEN FROM AN 8mm HOME MOVIE).

Tales of the Dogman go back to the late 1800's when it was supposedly sighted for the first time...not in the U.P. as one would think, but right here in the lower peninsula. According to listverse.com, this first time occurred in 1887, when the creature appeared before a group of lumberjacks in Wexford County. Figuring it was a large wild dog, they chased it until it attempted to hide in a hollow log. Trying to get it out of the log, these guys stupidly starting jabbing it with a stick; the Dogman let out a weird shriek and jumped out of the log. Needless to say, the men practically soiled themselves and ran like scared rabbits.

In 1987, Steve Cook jokingly recorded a song about Dogman; but to some listeners, it wasn't a joke. They began relating their own terror-tales of personal Dogman encounters with more and more "eyewitnesses" coming forth on a regular basis.

But is there really some odd creature roaming our state? Self-proclaimed eyewitnesses say yes. Some say it’s a cougar, others say it’s a grizzly bear, others want to believe it’s a real Dogman or Bigfoot (maybe it’s a ‘Dogfoot’?). It’s not just a northern Michigan thing, as folks even from our area – Mid-Michigan – have said to have seen some creature similar to this.

Listverse.com says one encounter that stands out is that of Robert Fortney, who saw the creature in the late 1930's. While fishing in the Muskegon River near the small Michigan village of Paris, a pack of wild dogs came out of the woods; Fortney fired his gun and scared 'em off...all except one: a large black dog that stood up on it's hind legs and attempted to scare Fortney by staring him down with it's glaring blue eyes. Fortney shot in the direction of the creature, which then disappeared into the woods.

Many hoaxes have appeared ever since: humans dressed up in hairy costumes being the favorite.

The video below posted by michigan-dogman.com shows pictures & film footage allegedly taken of this mysterious creature…some are obviously faked while some look like ordinary creatures: a puma or bear as mentioned above…see for yourself. And then tell us about YOUR sighting. Some of the video frames are in the photo gallery below so you can get a better look.

Whether you believe it or not…it just adds to the fascination of Michigan!

 

 

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