The “mystery animal,” probably either a dog or a coyote, found and rescued in Pennsylvania has added to its mystigue by chewing its way to liberty at the wildlife rescue station where it was being treated. Pictured below, the creature is definitely a canid but rescuers could not be sure if it was a dog or a coyote.
The animal was kept at Wildlife Works for about a week before it decided to bid adieu. The animal destroyed its living area and managed to chew through a screen to escape. It was genetically tested and the results are pending, but the amount of damage done in the escape leads a number of observers to feel it was probably a coyote. The shelter staff said they were “shocked” and “Mortified” by the destruction the animal did.
“It” was found cold and shivering by a Pennsylvania woman who has become something of a celebrity. “It” is a still unidentified animal that has baffled experts trying to determine exactly what kind of canine the creature is.
News reports agree that Christina Eyth found the animal. MSN identifies Eyth as a resident of Adams County . Eyth says she first thought it was a neighbor’s dog. She told news agencies that it was cold and shivering in the snowy area. She managed to get it into her basement and called animal rescue. Rescuers were baffled by the appearance of the docile animal. Genetic testing has been started, but the results could take up to one month.
Adams county is a small county in Pennsylvania’s southeast along the Maryland border. Other news reports say the animal was found near Fairfield in Westmoreland County in the western part of the state. Apparently the first rescuers on scene were From TJ’s Rescue Hideaway a small dog and cat fostering organization.
As the picture shows, the male animal is some type of canid. Rescuers at Wildlife Works suspect it is either a domestic dog or a coyote, although it isn’t clear exactly which. Wildlife Works was called in by TJ’s. Dogs and coyotes do sometimes interbreed, leading to coydogs, Although Dogs and coyotes can produce litters they don’t appear to do so too often, partly because the two animals have different breeding seasons. The genetic testing undertaken will take up to one month to complete and rescuers will update with results. One news report said Pennsylvania is seeing an increase in the number of dog-wolf crosses, which apparently are more common than dog-coyote crosses. Wolves and coyotes also crossbreed. This is a factor in the efforts to save the endangered red wolf. Since the small wolves do breed with coyotes finding pure blooded wolves is difficult.
Wildlife Works is a non-profit, donation funded volunteer supported wildlife rescue organization dedicated to rescuing and rehabilitating injured or distressed wildlife. It is located in Youngwood, PA.