Did you miss me, West Virginia? Because at this point, where is this state pulling its cryptids from? 

This week’s cryptid is the Snarly Yow, and it hails from West Virginia, though it had been sighted as far as Maryland in its heyday.

From the name alone, one would never guess that it is a sort of canine-based creature, or creatures might be more apt.

Like the Smoke Wolves, the various reports of the Yow leads me to believe that there are multiple of the species.

Described as a dog-like creature, the Snarly Yow is supposed to have dark blue, grey or white fur with saggy skin and red eyes and lips. It’s a physical being, unless fog is present, and is said to be able to keep up with a horse going at full gallop.

Unlike the Smoke Wolves that they seem almost cousin to, these beasts were first sighted by Germanic settlers in the 1700s, which is the origin of thei name, supposedly a reference to the uncanny sound they make. Most articles and papers regarding the Yow phrased it as, “through its teeth,” which makes me think that its famous yow is more of a growl than anything else (VL Jones West Virginia’s Snarly Yow).

Photo AI of the Snarly Yow. (Contributed/vgr.com)


Other notes describe the effects it has on those who see it, being able to cause fear and pain without making physical contact, as well as having a curse surrounding it. It is said that if a person sees the Yow three times, they will die. Even having seen it once is considered bad luck or an omen of bad events.

What I enjoyed most was examining various depictions of the creatures. One of the images that was included in an article about their German roots and sightings in Maryland depicted it as a dog standing on its back legs. However, more recent images look more akin to a dark-furred Falkor (the dragon from The Never Ending Story).

One of the more well-known sightings was an instance in which a hunter shot at it and reported that his bullets had gone through it, but that the bullets themselves were nowhere to be found when he went looking for them. The last sighting was a similar one in the 1970s, in which a man drove through a wolf and claimed that he had made contact, but that there was no feeling of having hit anything. When he got out to check, there was no sign of any animal dead or alive.

Interesting that West Virginia has a species so akin to another cryptid…

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