“Lions, Tigers, and Bears, oh my!” Wait! Hold up Dorthey, you are missing one, Dogmen. If Dogmen were in the Wizard of Oz, that show would have been even crazier. Now before you state that this is just a cryptid legend, hear me out and let me take you back to days of old.
History of Dogman/Dogmen
Dogmen are large and sometimes described as looking like upright canids. Many ancient cultures had stories that featured a dog-headed race of men. In around 400 BC, the Greek physician Ctesias wrote an intriguing and detailed account of the Dogmen in the mountains of India, which was at the time known as Indica.
“In the mountains dwell men who have the head of a dog; they wear skins of wild beasts as clothing, and they speak no language, bark like dogs, and in this way understand one another’s speech. They have teeth bigger than a dog’s…they understand the speech of the Indians, but cannot respond to them; instead they bark and signal with their hands and fingers, as do mutes.” — Ctesias
Many accounts were written including one by Alexander the Great. When he invaded India in the 4th century BC, he too claimed in letters that he had encountered the dog-headed men. Alexander the Great even claimed to have captured several of them in battle.
Dogmen even have been mentioned in the story of Saint Christopher. Saint Christopher often was depicted in earlier artwork of the Eastern Orthodox Church as having the head of a dog. According to the tale, during the reign of the Emperor Diocletian, a man was taken prisoner in a battle in western Egypt. He was described as being massive, with the head of a dog and a penchant for barking and eating raw flesh. He then supposedly met Jesus Christ, renounced his ways, got baptized, and was miraculously transformed into human form, after which he led a life of piety and became a soldier of God, eventually gaining sainthood. Below is a fresco of unknown origin showing St-Christopher as a mix of his eastern and western stories.
Travelers also often wrote of these mysterious dog-headed people. One Italian monk by the name of Odoric of Pordenone, who traveled about converting people between 1317 and 1330, claimed to have come across the Dogmen at the island of Nicoveran. They were described as being somewhat brutish, but displaying a form of organized religion, worshipping oxen and wearing various gold and silver religious charms.
Dogman/Dogmen Today
Have Dogmen disappear from history or are they still with us today? If you type in Dogman in the Internet search engine, you will believe they are alive and well. The number of sightings is staggering. Many have witnessed their abilities and realize they are lucky to be alive. Many have also witness Dogmen around Military institutions throughout the United States as well. If you are interested on hearing eyewitness accounts of individuals who write in about supernatural events that has happen to them, then you should check out Donovan Dread on YouTube.
What do I think of Dogman/Dogmen? Well, let us begin with realizing how difficult it would be to live in a human world. According to Dogman researcher Vic Cundiff: “Less than 1% of the eyewitnesses who have shared their encounters with me claimed to have been attacked by the Dogman they encountered.” Over the many accounts I have read, they are a warrior race which seems to have complex social norms. That being said, today it seems that the military has been using them for their own purposes and due to fear, people’s reactions have not always been the best. It is understandable why they are rarely seen.