Update: Belfast Lion
Posted by: Loren Coleman on September 1st, 2008
Charles Fort called it “The Wipe.” It is that hastily written story after some type of phenomenon is reported to quickly move affairs back into equilibration, so the status quo will be maintained.
With reference to the multiple sightings of a “large cat” on Belfast soil, after the search for the large felid failed, the official “Wipe” has now been put into place.
The Irish Times and other media sources for September 1, 2008, are reporting that the “Belfast ‘escaped lion’ was [a] large stray dog.”
“Police in Belfast have called off their search for an escaped ‘lion’ after it turned out to be a large stray dog,” stated The Irish Times.
“A police spokeswoman said officers now believed the animal in the park was in fact a large stray dog. ‘Police can confirm that there’s no stray lion wandering about in north Belfast,’ she said.”
“Belief” is an article of faith, and I see these statements about this being a dog no more trustworthy than the early reports that what was seen was a “lion.”
No “large dog” was produced. No owner was noted. The “large dog” appears to be as elusive as the “large lion.”
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Loren Coleman no longer writes for Cryptomundo. His archived posts remain here at Cryptomundo.
Hey Loren,
As a Dublin resident this really doesn’t surprise me at all. Over the years there’s been plenty of ABC’s sighted and reported here and up North. There’s been a few reasons for this over the years. It was often reported that criminal gang leaders would keep large cats like Pumas and Cougars as status symbols. I know of at least one case in recent memory where an average joe down here in Dublin was discovered to be in possession of a Cougar. He apparently used to walk it at night and feed it pig heads from the local butchers. But throughout the years there’s been reports of all sorts from Lions to Panthers and more. one friend of mine is convinced that he saw an overly large black feline out in the woods in Blessington County Wicklow about 3 years ago. I myself am certain I saw some type of large feline like a Manx or something similar in the car park of Loughlinstown Hospital here in Dublin going through the bins late one night.
So I don’t really find this to be too far fetched.
So, the “Belfast Large Stray Dog” turns out to be as much of a cryptid as the “Belfast Lion”…
Could it be a Black Dog (or more accurately a tan dog)?
I know they’re more known for England than the other British Isles, but its possible.
Obviously it was nothing more than an loose Irish Wolfhound. It’s just too bad so many people can’t tell the difference between an Irish Wolfhound and a lion.