Shunka Warak’in refers to a strange canine-like creature with precontact sightings extending as far north as the Great Plains to as far south as Mexico. A legendary creature that appears to have originated from the Báxoǰe (Ioway tribe), it was known among other tribes by different names, primarily in the northern Great Plains and Midwest regions. In the Siouxan dialect spoken by the Ioway people, Shunka Warak’in is pronounced SHOON-ka wa-rahk-ee, literally translated as thing that carries dog in mouth. With the characteristics of a canid (doglike mammals including wolves, foxes, and jackals), it defies explanation. More recent sightings have been recorded closer to the present day.
Some say it is a subspecies of the wolf. Others suggest it is a prehistoric type of hyena, but in every case it is known to defy the speed and strength of any wolf, accompanied by frightful, piercing howls. The eyes are often described as glowing red, and its face is that of something other than canine or feline. According to anthropologist and tribal member Lance Foster, the legend tells of a prowling beast that one night carried away the camp dogs. The Báxoǰe warriors surrounded and attacked the culprit, which resembled a blackish-colored wolf with high shoulders, low haunches, a squared head, and fangs, but it would not die. After tracking it for more than a day, they put it down, but in the throes of death it wailed as would a human being.
Alanson Skinner writes how the beast was nearly impossible to kill: “they decided that it must be a creature of great power. So they skinned it, and painted its hide, and later placed the hide in with the other powerful objects in the war bundle” (Skinner 1926, 211–212). Foster saw the original amulet hide that came from this bundle and notes that it did not resemble any hide he had ever observed, nor was it identified in the original field notes that accompanied the bundle held in a Milwaukee archive.
Around 1925–1930, Navajo Oshley, a sheep herder from the Four Corners region, witnessed something similar that he described as very big with reddish-colored fur and a white marking over the face. It was loud, heavy-footed, and carried a foul odor. The sheepherder shot it at close range, and it “howled like a human” (Oshley 2000, 45–46). It was said to be a skinwalker—someone who uses bile from a four-legged mammal to transform into that animal.
In the 1960s, reports held that a Shunka Warak’in was seen running alongside the vehicle of a family driving near the Missouri River. It ran into the side of the car, and when the driver accelerated to outrun the creature it continued in pursuit, terrifying the passengers. In the mid-1990s a woman alleged that a creature walked onto a gravel road in front of her car. With long legs like a deer’s and haunches close to the ground, it stopped and looked into the headlights, frightening the woman. She later described its face as smooth with red eyes but the gaze of a person. It walked into the ditch and disappeared into the dark. As late as 2006, a woman photographed a peculiar animal in her backyard on the outskirts of Omaha, Nebraska. It was a brownish color, climbing an embankment with long slender back legs and a body shaped something like that of a hyena. Although staff from nearby Henry Doorly Zoo examined the pictures, they remained uncertain about the creature’s identity.
In the 1880s, a compelling report came out of southern Montana from a settler family named Hutchins who reported something akin to a dark wolf chasing livestock, fitting all the characteristics of the Shunka Warak’in. Numerous ranchers in the area also reported seeing the same animal but at vast distances, suggesting it could travel quickly. Appearing several times on the Hutchins ranch, it was at last shot. A member of the family was a zoologist but was unable to identify what species the animal belonged to and ultimately sold the carcass to a taxidermist. It was soon forgotten but later recovered in 2007. It remains on display at the Idaho Museum of Natural History in Pocatello, Montana.
Sheila Ann Rocha
See also Axehandle Hound; Black Dog; Skinwalker
Further Reading
“Amazing Nebraska Cryptid Photo.” 2006. CryptoMundo website. http://cryptomundo.com/cryptozoo-news/nebcryptpix/. Accessed October 7, 2015.
“Episode II—Lance Foster Speaks: Ringdocus: The Legend of the Shunka’warakin.” YouTube. 2009. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7O9OZfOMk4I. Accessed May 23, 2015.
“Mystery of the Shunka Warak’in.” 2012. Cryptid Chronicles website. http://cryptidchronicles.tumblr.com/post/26009879556/mystery-of-the-shunka-warakin. Accessed May 29, 2015.
Oshley, Navajo. 2000. The Journey of Navajo Oshley: An Autobiography and Life History, edited by Robert S. McPherson. Logan: Utah State University Press.
Skinner, Alanson. 1926. Ethnology of the Ioway Indians. Milwaukee: n.p.