# Very strange-looking animal captured in India **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 26, 2022, 1:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-strange-looking-animal-captured-in-india/970368 "2022-08-26T01:49:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Bootb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e19b73/32.png) [@Bootb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bootb)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 1:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-strange-looking-animal-captured-in-india/970368/1 "2022-08-26T01:49:06Z")
Some people are saying that this is a chupacabra. Whatever it is, it’s certainly a weird one. I can’t understand the video, but it’s worth watching just to see the animal. Does anybody here know what it is? > **[Watch: Chupacabra-Like Creature Caught in India | Coast to Coast AM](https://www.coasttocoastam.com/article/watch-chupacabra-like-creature-caught-in-india/)** > > A strange piece of footage out of India shows a mysterious hairless creature that was captured in a home and some have likened the peculiar animal to the legendary chupacabra. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 1:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-strange-looking-animal-captured-in-india/970368/2 "2022-08-26T01:57:22Z")
As the article notes, I think it’s probably some sort of civet which has become hairless. But, it’s also clear that that website would rather encourage speculation about cryptids. ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 2:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-strange-looking-animal-captured-in-india/970368/3 "2022-08-26T02:03:31Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > As the article notes, I think it’s probably some sort of civet which has become hairless. But, it’s also clear that that website would rather encourage speculation about cryptids. - I’ve seen a number of animal rescue videos and that sure as hell looks like mange(also noted in the article). I sure hope it got the help it needed. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 2:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-strange-looking-animal-captured-in-india/970368/4 "2022-08-26T02:19:17Z")
If Coast to Coast is hyping it, the explanation will turn out to be quite ordinary. ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 2:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-strange-looking-animal-captured-in-india/970368/5 "2022-08-26T02:45:12Z")
Yup, that’s mange. Looks a lot like a mangey fox that was in the neighborhood a few years ago. ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 3:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-strange-looking-animal-captured-in-india/970368/6 "2022-08-26T03:03:52Z")
Yeah, my first thought was a canid with mange. ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 3:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-strange-looking-animal-captured-in-india/970368/7 "2022-08-26T03:08:03Z")
My vote is also for a dog with serious mange, and malnutrition. I’d like to see a picture of this creature after both are treated. ---
**Author:** ![scabpicker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scabpicker/32/8268_2.png) [@scabpicker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scabpicker)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 3:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-strange-looking-animal-captured-in-india/970368/8 "2022-08-26T03:13:12Z")
> [@Jackmannii](#): > > If Coast to Coast is hyping it, the explanation will turn out to be quite ordinary. Hehehe, you mean the guys who used to have the “Time Traveler Hot Line” aren’t doing hard journalism? Say it ain’t so! I really used to enjoy listening to that very, very silly program when driving at night. ---
**Author:** ![scudsucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scudsucker/32/14101_2.png) [@scudsucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scudsucker)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 5:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-strange-looking-animal-captured-in-india/970368/9 "2022-08-26T05:00:45Z")
The animal is able to climb, at one point it is hanging from the roof of its cage, which pretty much rules out a dog. My first impression was a marsupial of some kind, but as the odds of a mangy marsupial found in India are quite low, I am going with mangy civet, which are endemic. Well… the civets, at least, and judging from the street dogs I saw in India, also the mange. [![](https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRHS-RvtZPrv6XRDoI4pkO2CWWdNzUXKZe_5Q&usqp=CAU) ](https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRHS-RvtZPrv6XRDoI4pkO2CWWdNzUXKZe_5Q&usqp=CAU) ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 8:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-strange-looking-animal-captured-in-india/970368/10 "2022-08-26T08:19:18Z")
Not a dog - too bendy and climb-ey. Manget civet or mustelid. ---
**Author:** ![saje](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saje/32/3631_2.png) [@saje](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/saje)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 10:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-strange-looking-animal-captured-in-india/970368/11 "2022-08-26T10:16:37Z")
Yes, a civet more than likely. Poor thing 😢 ---
**Author:** ![Isilder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/cc9497/32.png) [@Isilder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Isilder)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 10:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-strange-looking-animal-captured-in-india/970368/12 "2022-08-26T10:50:54Z")
Definitely an asian palm civet. > **[Asian Palm Civet](https://www.indiawilds.com/forums/showthread.php?7577-Asian-Palm-Civet)** > > Caught this one on our compound wall one night during peak monsoon. > > Asian or Common palm civets are plenty in the Kerala country side. They are also called Toddy cats for their habit of raiding palm trees for the sap. Well known for their habit of... > **[Civet Farming – I.C.A.R.U.S Inc.](https://icarusinc.blog/category/civet-farming/)** > > Posts about Civet Farming written by projecticarus2015 Not sure its mange, its more like malnutrition ,like a caged animal might suffer if fed badly but also living in the city they don’t get the correct diet. ---
**Author:** ![Lucas\_Jackson](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lucas_jackson/32/303_2.png) [@Lucas\_Jackson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lucas_Jackson)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-strange-looking-animal-captured-in-india/970368/13 "2022-08-26T19:02:19Z")
> [@saje](#): > > Poor thing 😢 Seconded. 😥😡 ---
**Author:** ![nearwildheaven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/90db22/32.png) [@nearwildheaven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nearwildheaven)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-strange-looking-animal-captured-in-india/970368/14 "2022-08-26T19:14:21Z")
This looks like a much healthier example of the creature described in the OP. (Aren’t these also the animals whose poop is used to make the world’s most expensive coffee?) ---
**Author:** ![bobot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bobot/32/21622_2.png) [@bobot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bobot)\ **Post date:** [August 26, 2022, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-strange-looking-animal-captured-in-india/970368/15 "2022-08-26T19:18:00Z")
> [@Bootb](#): > > Does anybody here know what it is? To answer your question factually, no, I don’t know what it is. Is there a remote viewer in the house? ---
**Author:** ![crowmanyclouds](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crowmanyclouds/32/19884_2.png) [@crowmanyclouds](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/crowmanyclouds)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2022, 5:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-strange-looking-animal-captured-in-india/970368/16 "2022-08-27T05:42:15Z")
> [@Ike\_Witt](#): > > Yeah, my first thought was a canid with mange. Canid? How did I see ‘a cryptid with mange’? ---
**Author:** ![Broomstick](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/broomstick/32/246_2.png) [@Broomstick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broomstick)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2022, 9:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-strange-looking-animal-captured-in-india/970368/17 "2022-08-27T09:08:09Z")
Another vote for mangy civet. ---
**Author:** ![scudsucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scudsucker/32/14101_2.png) [@scudsucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scudsucker)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2022, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-strange-looking-animal-captured-in-india/970368/18 "2022-08-27T14:34:32Z")
A different species. The one I posted is Viverra zibetha; the coffee poo civet is the common palm civet - Paradoxurus hermaphroditus. They do share some territory so it is possible, I suppose, but V. Zibetha is much more common in the area where this animal was captured. Civets of various species are common over south Asia and much of Africa. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [August 27, 2022, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/very-strange-looking-animal-captured-in-india/970368/19 "2022-08-27T14:43:02Z")
When I hear “chupacabra” I think of a Latin dance number performed by Carmen Miranda.