After dinner, you and your friends decide to take a drive through the back roads. You let the windows down, make the music blare and spend the rest of the night partying. As your friend continues driving through the darkness, you see something move on the road ahead of you. The car begins to slow down and the headlights show what you all assume to be a big dog. One of your friends whistles at the dog and when it turns and faces your general direction, your eyes widen in disbelief.

This thing is no dog. Straight out of a horror film, this creature stands up on its hind legs and targets the car. Immediately, your friend puts the car in reverse and takes off. As the beast’s image from the rear-view mirror fades away, you wonder: what the HELL  was that thing?

You may have stumbled upon is the infamous Bray Road Beast. This beast, when viewed at a distance, may appear to be a big dog, but upon closer examination, you recoil at just how monstrous it really is. When standing upright, it appears to be shaped as a muscular lean man; however, its whole body is covered in fur.

Witnesses have varying descriptions of its fur as black, brown, or gray. Eyewitness accounts claim that when this beast stands on its hind legs it can be anywhere from six to seven feet tall. If you happen to stay long enough during an encounter, you may nervously notice glistening three-inch claws and pearly razor-sharp teeth dripping with blood. What the hell is this Bray Road Beast? Where does it come from?

The beast was originally discovered in the early 1990s when numerous reports of a dog creature started appearing in Wisconsin. At the time, this beast was only seen on Bray Road, hence the name. Soon, more and more people made reports of Bray Road Beast encounters and signs. However, as reports kept coming in, the beast was reported in several counties of Wisconsin. As you look over these different reports, you realize how lucky you really are given your encounter. Reports indicate the beast is aggressive with no fear of humans.

To date, there are no fatalities associated with the Bray Road Beast…that we know of.

As you read through the reports, you learn a thing or two about the behavior of the Bray Road Beast. You learn that the beast will chase cars down, even when they’re driving away. You wonder why the beast chose not to chase you and your friends that night.

Other reports show what type of prey the Bray Road Beast goes after. Farmers have reported their livestock have been slaughtered by the beast, but there are numerous reports detailing different events of what occurred to their livestock. Some farmers only see the bones of their cattle, while others report their cattle as mutilated and not much flesh is eaten.

After reading the reports and learning the behavior of the Bray Road Beast, you wonder what would you do if the beast decided to attack and you couldn’t get away. After all, you know what you saw, and by God, it’s still out there. What would you do if you needed to defend yourself if you saw the beast again? Perhaps it’s time to legally arm yourself with a firearm—but would that be enough? How does the beast attack?

It’s been theorized that because there are no reports of any human injuries, the beast won’t attack unless provoked. In events where people have seen the beast charging, this could be meant as a warning, but since no one stays to see what happens next, no attack has ever been reported. This beast is clearly powerful enough to attack and kill a man. More than likely, this creature is strong enough to overpower livestock and other animals larger than man.

The biggest concern is that if the beast attacks, bites, eats, or licks a person, it will spark a desire for the taste for human flesh.

This concern has prompted local militia to form strategies to ensure the safety of civilians. Since local militias are aware of the behavior and description of the Bray Road Beast, they use hunter techniques in an attempt to track it down, first by checking all the reported sightings to see if there is a pattern. If multiple sightings are in one area, then the militia will be able to learn where the beast’s territory is. Another option is to see how often a beast strikes a particular farm for food as this could provide an opportunity to set up a trap to either capture or kill the beast.

Once they have determined a likely area, they can place bait to lure it in and take it out. Since the favorite food seems to be livestock, it’d be wise to chain up a cow or a goat like in Jurassic Park. Local militia would likely use a variety of animals at different known sighting locations simultaneously to draw out the beast. Since it’s unlikely that the beast will be afraid of humans, militia will be armed and ready in close proximity to ensure that it dies as fast as possible without causing any human harm. This plan would likely work if the militia keep their distance and hide from the beast as it would likely escape if it detected humans. Blending into the background and using ghillie suits would work well.

While we just don’t know the whole truth about the Bray Road Beast, yet, knowledge is power. You shouldn’t be afraid to roam the back roads knowing there’s a beast lurking about, but it’s important to be on your guard. By legally arming yourself, with a gun in your car and good observations skills, you should be prepared for any encounters, and save yourself from getting attacked and potentially killed. The next time you hear howling in the night, don’t assume it’s just a wolf. It can be the Bray Road Beast, looking for its next meal.