Speaker 1: At a book.
Speaker 2: If you'd like to be able to listen to the
show without ads and have full access to bonus content,
that's an option. To find out how, please go to
Dogmanencounters dot com Forward Slash Podcast. Tonight's guest is Crystal. Crystal,
Welcome to the show.
Speaker 1: Hi there, it's nice to be here.
Speaker 2: Well, it's great, haven't you. We appreciate your time. Crystal,
Please give us a brief bio in yourself.
Speaker 1: Well, I am thirty five years old. I do a
lot of volunteer in my community, and I do have
a part time job as a cook at the Senior Center,
So I cook for a community that comes into the
diner and I cook for delivery home meals for our
seniors in the community. I have two kids and that's
my full time job. I love being a mom and
I'm very active with my kids. I have a German
Shepherd service dog who is just absolutely amazing.
Speaker 2: If anyone listening is wondering if Crystal is as nice
as she seems to be, yeah she definitely is. Trust
me on that. Yeah, you definitely are.
Speaker 1: Thank you.
Speaker 2: Oh you're welcome. And if you remember everyone listening, that
is when Dan came on last week and talked about
that friend of his who also had an encounter that
was really similar to the one that he had. Well,
he was talking about Crystal here with that in mind. Crystal,
how did you two meet?
Speaker 1: Well, we were coworkers, probably about thirteen years ago, out
of pizzeria, and we remained friends for a very long time.
In about ten years and do our friendship or so,
we started dating. We are no longer dating, We are
back to being friends. But I still consider him one
of my very best friends.
Speaker 2: He's a great guy too. I'm so glad you two met.
But if you know him that well, you'd probably be
the perfect person to get some dirt on old Dan,
wouldn't you.
Speaker 1: Oh, no comment, Noel, Oh come.
Speaker 2: On, give me something now, I can hold it over
his head that way.
Speaker 1: Oh, I'll do enough of that for the both of us.
Speaker 2: I hear you. I heard that. Crystal. You were five
or six when you had your first dog me an encounter.
What was life like for you back then?
Speaker 1: Yes, Well, I was an average adventure child, but I
had the benefit of living in a home that was
surrounded by the woods, So I would describe my childhood
as being a fay of the forest. From sun up
till sundown. I was out in those woods, climbing in
ravines and chomping through the creek. And even though I
was a very happy child, I did have a little
bit of a not so healthy home life. So my
love for the woods was just as much a part
of the forest as it was a happy escape for me.
Speaker 2: You poor thing. I can understand why you did spend
so much time out in the woods after talking with
you about what you went through back then. Like I said,
poor thing, But of course we're going to get into
that later on. Considering everything that happened to you out
there in the forest, which of course we're going to
talk about as well. At one time, before those things
happened or that happened, you said that you felt a
strong connection to the woods. But after you had that
first experience, which did take place in the woods, was
that connection lost at least to a certain degree, or
did you keep it? I, you know, for a small
period of time.
Speaker 1: I think there was some healing. I don't think it
was very long. I can't remember exactly, but I did
have a small disconnect where I had to build back
my bravery. But honestly, I think my connection to the
forest became even stronger. I felt a strong connection before
and after that wasn't touched. But I do think that
the experience brought a whole new one.
Speaker 2: Well that's great. Yeah, that's much better than being tormented
over the years and having a really hard time dealing
with the experiences that you had, So thank goodness for that. Yes,
it sure seems like dogmen are drawn to you for
whatever reason. Do you have any theories and why that
might be.
Speaker 1: You know, as a child, I had a very spiritual
belief system in regards to nature. I was that child
that would whisper to the water and leave offerings for
animals and the trees alike, and burying treasures in the woods.
As a child, I believed it was, you know, a
spirit of the forest that was visiting me. Uh And
I really thought that it was because of my love
of the forest. As an adult, looking back, you know,
I wonder if these creatures, you know, perhaps were watching
me for far longer than I knew, and perhaps we're
aware of my vulnerability in the situation I was in
at home.
Speaker 2: Like I told you before, I'm pretty sure they were
watching you for a long time. I give pretty good
money on that bed. I don't know that for sure,
but I'm pretty darn sure they were. When you tried
to tell your parents about that first encounter. Unfortunately they
didn't believe you. Did that wound you or were you
able to handle that fairly?
Speaker 1: Well? Oh, it absolutely wounded me, And I think it
wounded me in terms of, you know, my dog man
encounter and healing from it. I do think not being
believed and you know, being made to feel that it
was me being crazy or my imagination being strong stronger
than my logic. I believe it also affected me coming
forward with other stories in my life, you know, not
just with creatures of the forest and dog Man, but
even experiences with humans. I think it took me a
long time, well into my adulthood, to feel comfortable with
owning my story and not letting other people's beliefs gaslighting
me into changing how much I have faith in myself.
Speaker 2: Well, like they say, I do believe there is a
lot of truth to that old adage that what doesn't
kill you will make you stronger. Maybe not right off
the bat when a traumatic experience happens, but down the road.
That's normally how it goes, And when I think about
how frightening that encounter the second encounter was, I'm just
glad that you were able to come to terms with
it as quickly as you were, as that was a
frightening encounter. I mean, that would have put a lot
of people over the edge. I don't know that there
are that many people who could have possibly come back
from an experience like that, but you did, And thank Goodness.
Speaker 1: For that, absolutely, thank goodness.
Speaker 2: Oh yeah, yeah, definitely. Did you experience behavioral issues due
to those dog man experiences and how your parents responded
to you reaching out to them for help.
Speaker 1: You know, I haven't ever thought of it that way,
but I do think I did experience some behavioral issues,
and maybe not in the sense of throwing tantrums or
anything like that. I do think I had a more
silent separation anxiety. Even though I didn't have a very
emotional connection from my parents, I still felt protected by them,
so I did break rules in order to feel comforted.
I was not allowed in their bedroom and at night
I would army crawl under their bed in order to
sleep with my blanky and things like that. I definitely
would sneak around and even if they were downstairs and
I was supposed to be in my room, I would
sneak and I'd go lay in a closet to be
close to them. So I don't think I had a
lot of behaviors that they necessarily noticed. I did break
rules in order to have comfort that I did not
get from them outwardly.
Speaker 2: It's understandable why you went to those links, like sneaking
under their bed at night and sleeping there. It's just
a shame you had to do that because they weren't
supporting you and trying to help you. Although even if
they would have tried to help you, when you consider
what happened when you had that second encounter, you might
have still had those problems. But it sure would have
been nice if they would have been supportive, which they
unfortunately weren't. Did you avoid spending time in the woods
for a time after having that first encounter or did
you continue going in?
Speaker 1: I did, and you know, I think from the gaslighting
from my parents, as well as just being a small
child and not being able to internalize things as a whole,
I did very much so separate the first experience from
the second. So when I returned to the forest and
was tramping around in the woods. I was more so
thinking of my first experience as being real and not
so much the second one. I think it was not
until I discussed things with Dan and I learned about
dog Man where I felt comfortable with trusting my own experience,
my own memory, and letting myself just truly believe what
I experienced in my second encounter.
Speaker 2: You sure did do a great job of putting the
pieces together so you could come to terms with all this.
Thank goodness for that. But as intelligent as you are,
I think that helped a lot. I really do.
Speaker 1: Thank you.
Speaker 2: Oh you're welcome. If you've had a Dogman encounter that
you'd like to speak with me about, whether in private
or on the show, please go to Dogmanancounters dot com
and submit a report. All right, Crystal, please tell us
about your encounters. Now give us everal last detail that
comes to mind.
Speaker 1: All right. Well, like I said, I was a forest fan,
so I was just trumping around and frolicking, and I
did that quite frequently. I knew the woods around my
property like the back of my hand. I had a
lot of friends, but most of them were a mile
or up to three miles away from my home, and
being as young as I was, I was not allowed
to walk on the highway, So I don't know how
at such a young age, I don't know if I
could do it as easily now as an adult even.
But I found my different routes to different places, and
I would find my friend's property through back trails in
the woods that weren't normally used by humans. So on
this particular day, I don't think I was even heading
to a friend's house. I was just loving my church
of the woods, and I would frequently go up steep ravines,
and you know, I was looking for fossils that day.
So I went to an area of the creek that
had a very steep embankment on one side, and like
I said, it was hot out, so I would tramp
around and climb, and when I got hot or dirty,
I would jump in the creek. And it wasn't super deep,
so I would, you know, lay on my stomach and
just kind of crawl around and swim in the shallows
down the creek. And so I was in no means
being quiet. I was definitely being a rambunctious child, bouncing around.
And I got to an area of the creek where
there was a curve that went around a very steep
embankment on the right. It was very rocky, and when
I looked up, when I had just barely rounded that corner,
I froze and I realize that there was what I
thought was an oddly shaped timberwolf staring directly into my eyes.
I can't say for certain heal far at what a
way it was, but it was between three and six
feet away. It was extremely closeew I felt my breath
leave my body. My heart was pounding so loudly. I
could feel it in my skin. I could feel my
heart beat and my fingertips, and it felt like time
itself stopped. It was postured in a way where it
appeared as if it was ready to pounce. It was
very clear that it had noticed me far before I
noticed it, and it felt like we stayed like that
for a very long time. And just when I felt
like I was going to pass out, I was going
to hyperventilate. I could start to feel my bones trembling.
Speaker 2: Oh, I'm sorry, take your time, there's no rush.
Speaker 1: I started to notice the odd parts of this creature
a little bit more. It wasn't standing in a way
I had ever seen a dog stand. I had encountered
many coyotes, but I had never been around a wolf.
So I think that's what made me think this was
a timberwolf was the fact that it was huge. Its fur,
especially around its shoulders, was very like thick very I
don't want to say course, but it was just almost
fluffy on the upper half of its body, and its
forearms and legs were extremely long. And I remember the pause,
and I was so small in comparison it was. I
can't even imagine how big this would have been for
an adult, but as a small child who was much
smaller than an average six year old. I was wearing
three T four T clothes at six years old, so
I was very small. Its paws were outstretched in a
very strange way, where the knuckles seemed to be a
bit longer, it seemed a bit wider, and the paw
that was closest to me it was almost as if
it was gripping the rock underneath it. And I was
just an absolute shock. Like I said, this felt like
it was a moment that was never ending. It was
probably very short, but I was starting to feel flush
in my face. I felt like I was going to
pass out, and it just stared deep into my soul.
I felt as though it was going to attack, and
my instinct was just to not move. I felt like
I wasn't breathing, and there was a moment where I
didn't know if I was going to be able to
keep standing. And at that very second, the creature's entire
face changed. It softened. It continued staring at me, very
very deeply, but it was almost as if the whole body,
without moving, became soft, and though its posture didn't change,
I felt like I could breathe again, and it moved
a little bit. It took a slight step back, still
staring at me. I don't think I moved at all. Honestly,
I was still frozen, but I'm sorry. I can just
picture this as if it was happening right now, and
it was absolutely terrifying. But I did feel better when
it softened. I still felt in danger, but it leaned
down and it started drinking from the creek. It broke
eye contact with me, and it lapped up every once
in a while, kind of looking up at me, And
when it was finished, it took a few steps back,
stared at me. Again with the same soft expression. It
seemed very intelligent. However, even though it no longer was
an a predatory stance, it still felt like it was
assessing if I was a threat. And at this point
I don't even remember what my body was doing, but
I do know that I felt as if I was
a statue and I was frozen in time. It turned
around and it went up a few steps of the
steep embankment. There it turned around, gave me another very deep,
soft stare, and then disappeared into the woods. I don't
remember how much time passed between my first and second encounter.
I do know it was not very long. I know
I was the same age, it was the same summer,
but I was asleep in my room when I awoke
to a close sound. I looked up from my bed
and I saw that very same what I thought was
a strangely shaped timber wolf staring directly at me with
the original locked eyes that we had when we first encountered.
It was not soft. It was very harsh. It felt predatorial,
and again I just felt as if my whole body
had turned ice cold. It was petrifying. I don't think
I even moved to sit up. I was too scared
to yell for my parents, and we just sat there
for again what felt a very very long time. Its
eyes were I had night lights at this time because
I was a very small child, so I could see
it very well. Its eyes were an amber, like a
coffee gold. They were absolutely beautiful. But its face was
turned down so that its eyes were kind of looking.
Speaker 3: Up at me in my bed, and it again the
same experience that happened in the trees. Its body and
its face completely relaxed. Now it wasn't like a happy
dog with its tongue hanging out or anything like that.
It was still an absolutely terrifying sight to see, but
it no longer gave me the sensation that I was
going to be pounced upon. But as it started to relax,
I started to hear other noises coming from my home
and my house my bedroom was on the second floor,
and we had a huge balcony that overlook our living
room and kitchen, so you could hear everything from the
bedrooms if the door was open, and I could hear
a lot of different noises. They were not loud, they
were very subtle, but they were coming from many different
areas at my house. And I don't know why I
felt this way, where these thoughts came from, But in
the moment, laying in my bed with eyes locked on
this creature, I had this intuition that there were many
of these creatures and that this was the only one
I was allowed to see, and that they wanted me
to know of their presence, and I just laid there,
absolutely still. I wanted to scream, I wanted to get
my parents, but there was something inside of me that
was telling me, because of the other creatures, I needed
to have the same experience that I did in the woods.
I felt like I was being given a test that
I needed to have the right response in order to
not be in danger. And apparently laying there still without
saying a word, I don't even know what my expression was,
but I don't think my posture or my face changed
from when I glanced up casually to the moment I
saw it.
Speaker 1: I was just absolutely still, and that was the right
thing to do, because the creature that had softened to
me once it was done staring at me, it looked
behind itself for a brief moment and looked back at
me even softer in expression than it was The first
time it stood, it stood on two legs, still staring
directly into my heart, almost curious. I felt as though
it was watching my expression. But as a small child,
I remember thinking, oh my gosh, oh my goodness, that's
why it looks like that, because it did look so
awkward on all fours. Like I said, the forearms were
super long, the legs just looked awkward and way too
big for its body. But when it stood up on
two legs so tall and broad, it all of a
sudden looked normal. Those awkward legs and forearms, it looked
much more proportional. And I did not know what to think.
I don't remember feeling more afraid. I just knew that
I needed to not respond. So I laid there as
still and quiet as I possibly could, and I tried
so hard to hold in fear, thinking about all the
times I had learned from my elders about how to
react with predators in the forest, to not show fear
and to stand my ground. And luckily that's what I did,
because it just walked away after it saw my response.
It just turned and walked away, and I didn't hear
any more sounds. I didn't hear the door close, and
even though it did not harm me, I was still
in a state of absolute fear. So I laid in
my bed, wide awake, without moving a muscle until the
sun came up and I heard my parents stir in bed,
and as soon as I heard them awaken, I ran
into their bedroom absolutely trembling and bawling and screaming, telling
my story of the wolves who came in our house,
about how they stood, and I, you know, as an
adult looking back, I described it as kind of like
a mafia, like a criminal organization, that they came into
our home and they're going to come back, and I
know they have an agenda. And unfortunately, my parents were
not comforting. They were embarrassed, ashamed. They told me not
to talk crazy like that. I believe we were having
some sort of social event that day, and so the
main goal for them was making sure that I did
not say anything about it at that event that day,
and to keep my mouth shut about it and to
never talk about it again. They told me that I
had a nightmare and that it wasn't real and I
needed to stop talking that way or I'd have to
go talk to a doctor. So I never spoke about
it again until I met Dan, and I held that fear,
but I did let them gaslight me into believing that
that second occurrence was a nightmare. And maybe that was
a little bit of a blessing, because if I had
truly held that as a child, I don't think I
would have gone back to the woods. And even though
I took a little break, I did go back to
the woods. And because I separated those experiences, I believed
that the first creature I had encountered was a spirit
of the forest in the form of a wolf. And
there were many days where my home life was very
troubled and I sought comfort from being in the woods
and knowing that there was a predator out there who
chose me is how I felt. I felt that I
had passed a test and that this seemingly timber wolf
chose to not hurt me and could see my innocence,
And unfortunately, that wasn't something I always experienced at home.
So I went back to the woods, and slowly but
surely I went closer and closer back to the area
of the Greek where I had my first interaction, and
I would leave offerings and as a child, and I
still have these memories that I can step right back
into as if I was there. Where I would be
walking in the creek in the same way I always did,
but I could hear a creature following me very closely,
never showing itself, whether it was the dog man or not,
whether it was another creature. It did happen many times
where I was being closely followed. My pace was kept
and for some reason, my intuition told me that I
was safe as long as I did not seek out
to have a face to face occurrence, which I did not.
I would hear the creature and I would just ignore it.
I would smile and probably skip a little bit and
be very excited to leave my offering. And when I
got to that spot where I left my offering, I
was no longer being followed home. It was as if
I was being followed to our spot, and I would
stay there for a little bit. I believe I would
climb a tree and I would talk to the spirit
of the forest, and then I would go home. And
that was something that I experienced in that spot up
until we moved when I was about eight or nine
years old.
Speaker 2: When you finally did move, were you disappointed were you
upset or were you in a way happy to just
leave the area.
Speaker 1: I was very upset. I was very upset. But fortunately
we did move to another area that was surrounded by
the woods, not as much, and it was an area
that had a lot more properties attached to it, so
I had to be a lot more careful. I wasn't
as free range and feral in the woods as I
used to be, but I have always lived in an
area where I could be in the woods. I don't
believe I relieved at all. I do think that as
I got older, I found other forms of comfort besides
my parents, and I do think that was the hardest
part of the whole experience for me, was the gas lighting.
Not being able to seek comfort. I think that was
probably the hardest part of the whole experience. Even though
the second meeting with dog Man was absolutely petrifying, I
did have the grace of believing maybe that part was
a nightmare. And it wasn't until I learned about dog
Man stories. And you know, at the time, I didn't
know anything about dog Man. I didn't know anything about
were wolves. All I knew was animals of the forest
and what I believed to be were spirits of the forests,
protecting nature, and that was what I internalized in that moment,
and I believed parents that my second encounter was a nightmare.
So I didn't really hold my own truth for a
very long time, simply because I wasn't believed it.
Speaker 2: Isn't life something here you go through those very traumatic experiences,
but you're a very well adjusted adult. Now. Most people
would be torn down by those experiences and probably never
would recover without a lot of help. But you did,
Thank Goodness for that, and also it says a lot
about your makeup, your constitution. Thank you, well, you're welcome,
But yeah, just telling it like it is, how big
of a forest was it that was behind your home
there when you have those encounters.
Speaker 1: You know, it's hard for me to say there have
been a lot of developments in that area since then,
but it was very vast. I know, we lived probably
miles from town. I know that it was at least
you know, in some areas, probably ten miles of woods.
In other areas probably much much more vast, but sporadic,
little developments every so often. I would say, like at
the time, it was not big developments. They would just
be like one called to set, you know, with surrounding
homes every several miles or so. But there wasn't a
lot of farmland out there. It was mostly woods.
Speaker 2: That must have been really big woods. And what better
place for a dog men to run around?
Speaker 1: It?
Speaker 2: Had it made?
Speaker 1: Yes? And I did believe, you know, as a child,
that there were many of these creatures, and that I
was being protected by the one that I met, and
that I had to follow these rules of not seeking
them out, and what I believed was respecting its boundaries
when it was near me and it would respect mine.
Speaker 2: Well, you might have been spot on with those conclusions,
and whatever you had to do to make yourself feel comfort,
I'm glad you did it, so thank goodness for that. Yes,
you told us about going through the woods to get
to your friend's houses. How far of a walk would
you say that was, though in a lot of cases,
oh you know, I.
Speaker 1: Think it would be between one and five miles. I
don't know how I did it, honestly, I don't know
how I navigated as well as I did. I was
raised my father was in the military, and he did
a lot of survival camping, as I would call it,
So you know. I was taught how to read moss
on logs and trees to find the direction. I was
very good at knowing the flow of the creek and
the sun. I used all of those things to navigate,
even at five six years old.
Speaker 2: How impressive is that? Wow? For you to be in
such a big woods and travel so far and not
have any trouble, That's awfully impressive. I'm really impressed, thank you.
Speaker 1: And I did get a lot better after my first
occurrence in the woods with dog Man. I definitely became
a lot more aware of my surroundings. I did start
to keep my eyes a lot more peeled. I learned
how to frolic quietly, and even as adult, I'm very
capable of going through very thick woods without making as
much sound as I think your average adult wood because
I am very light afoot and I'm very good at
navigating through the thickest parts of woods, and I find
it incredibly healing. However, I in no way seek out
interactions with dog Man or any other cryptids. As much
as I do love and respect the forest, I do
recognize that it is not mine that I am in
something else's territory. Probably many, many creatures territory. So I
am very careful to leave things as I found it,
and if something looks like it's inhabited by a large
creature or small, I try very hard to respect that space.
Speaker 2: Well, that's probably a good idea that you do that.
How long was it after you had your encounters before
you found out what it was that you saw and
that it wasn't a wear wolf?
Speaker 1: I believe it wasn't until I met Dan and we
enjoy talking about all sorts of paranormal things ENCRYPTID. It
was when he told me his story about what he
believed to beat dog Man coming into his home, where
I said, I had a nightmare almost exactly like that.
And when I told him the story, he was like, Crystal,
I really think you let your parents gaslight you into
thinking that was a nightmare. I think you need to
hold the fact that that might have been real and
it might have been the same thing that you encountered
in the woods. And that's when he told me about
a lot of different stories about dog Man, very specific
ones and just legends in general, and where you know,
we found this happened in an area that was very
heavily tied to Native American history and burial sites. So yeah,
I did not really hold this until I was in
my thirties where that this was a dog man encounter.
Speaker 2: Like I told you before, I'm so glad you met
Thank goodness for that. And what are the odds of
you finding someone like that you had his own dog
man encounter. But then again, like I tell people, you
and believe how many people have encounters with these guys.
It's just something you would know because so many people
who have these encounters that keep them to themselves. That's
why you probably know other people who have had dog
mea and encounters, but for the aforementioned reasons, you don't
realize it.
Speaker 1: Yes, And honestly, I don't talk about this, as I
told you on the phone. Besides my parents and Dan,
you are the only person I've spoken to about this,
And unlike Dan, I'm not very confident about talking of
anything similar to this with other people. And it is
purely for the fear and anxiety of being believed, of
being made to feel crazy. And the reason why I
came to the conclusion that I wanted to be on
your show, that I wanted to go on the air,
is that I want to speak to the people that
you're talking about, the people that have had encounters, the
ones who don't want to share their story. I want
to encourage everybody that it doesn't matter who believes you,
that you just need to believe yourself and that is enough.
Because the freedom that I was given in my relationship
with Dan, to be able to just hold my truth
for what it was was so incredibly healing. And as
a human species, we go through that with experiences like
encountering dog Man, but we also go through it as
abuse survivors and living in a world where it's really
hard to tell our story and it's so important that
we advocate for ourselves against ourselves. It's so easy to
black box things that are hard, that are scary, that
we don't want to admit our real and I firmly
believe it it's an important part of our healing process
to just let ourselves hold our own story for what
it is.
Speaker 2: Well, that's all very well said. Yeah, I think you're
spot on. It's all about exposure when it comes to
getting over a traumatic experience like a dog meaning encounter.
If you keep a bottled up you can't fool yourself,
you can't hide anything from yourself. It's not going to
do any good in almost every case. So I'm glad
you eventually worry able to find Dan so you could
let that genie out of the bottle.
Speaker 1: Yes, absolutely, your.
Speaker 2: First encounter happened during daylight hours. Obviously. Do you think
you're lucky stars that it didn't happen at night or
is that something that you haven't put much thought into,
because in a way it kind of eased you into
this whole world of dog men, knowing that they're out there.
Speaker 1: Yes, and it was daylight, but it was you know,
in that golden hour. The sun wasn't necessarily setting, but
it was getting very close to that point, so the
day was coming to a close. But I am very
thankful that it happened during daylight. I wasn't supposed to
be in the woods at night, but up until that
point I would break that rule pretty frequently because I
would go so far and it would sometimes take me
longer to get back then I could, you know, I
could navigate directions in getting places very well, but in
sense of time when you're in the woods. And again,
this wasn't when there were cell phones and stuff like that,
so there were a lot of occurrences where I was
still out there at night, and I, you know, wasn't
as prepared as I could have been. I usually did
have some things with me, like a flashlight. But you know,
if I did have an occurrence where I was injured
or attacked, it would be very, very difficult to find
Young Crystal out in the woods because I could have
been very far away. So I am very thankful for
that fact. And you know, up until our conversation, I
believed that this was an accident, that I had stumbled
into this encounter, and it wasn't until you brought it
to my attention that there is absolutely no way that
the dog man did not hear me coming, and that
it probably was watching me as I frequented this area
so much that it probably forced this encounter.
Speaker 2: I beg of money that's what happened, even though it
hadn't forced an encounter to happen before then. I'm sure
it was taking your measure the day that you walked
up on it and locked eyes with you and was
steering into your soul. I wasn't there, but I'm pretty
darn SURREI it was taking your measure.
Speaker 1: Oh, absolutely absolutely it was so obvious and I don't
even know how to articulate it into words, but it
was very clear that this creature was intelligent, that it
was analyzing, and it was assessing me very very deeply.
Speaker 2: Yeah, they seemed to be pretty good at that. Unfortunately,
after a moment of steering at you, you said that
its mood seemed to change, it softened. Why do you
think it did that.
Speaker 1: I believe that it recognized I was not a threat,
and as a child, I believed because it already knew me.
I felt that this was, like I said, a spirit
or guardian of the forest, and I thought it was
a test. I thought it was testing me to see
if I was worthy for its presence.
Speaker 2: See that's the thing. A while ago, you mentioned that
its mood seemed to soften because you thought it didn't
see as a threat. But you're five or six years old.
You're not a threat to it. If you were an adult,
you wouldn't have been a threat to it. And it
knew you were there. It forced that encounter to happen,
So I think it had a level of comfort with
you that was through the roof because it knew that
you just were not a threat. Whatsoever a five or
six year old kid, not at all. But I didn't
know if upon more reflection, if maybe something else had
come to the surface, making you think, okay, well maybe
this or that also might be why it softened.
Speaker 1: You know, I do think, you know, maybe it wasn't
so much if I was a threat, or if it
was assessing if I thought it was a threat, what
my demeanor would do, if I would run, if you know,
if I would scream and you know, just absolutely go
bananas and fear, if I would cower, you know, like prey.
I don't know, but it was definitely analyzing me. And
it was when it softened, you know, it was still petrifying.
It didn't soften to the point, you know, there was
a wagging tail or anything like that. It was still
definitely prostured towards me for most of the encounter, but
it it it definitely lost a lot of the threatening
energy that I was getting from it.
Speaker 2: Thankingness for that. Yes, please describe its head study as
carefully as you can.
Speaker 1: Its head was very big. Again, I believe this was
an oddly shaped timber wolf. Its shoulders were very broad,
its muzzle was long, its forehead was wide. The fur
was very thick around its shoulders, upper arms, and neck.
It's I don't remember seeing its teeth, but when I
first encountered it, its ears were turned like back and down.
It looked in like a crouching like almost pouncing posture,
And when it softened, the ears went to a more
natural position, but they were pointed directly at me, and
the ears stayed pointed towards me even when it leaned
down to drink. It was I would say, colored like
a timber wolf, but maybe a little bit more black
with some gray. I can't remember the exact patterns because
it was just kind of, you know, blended in very well.
It wasn't striped or spotted or anything like that, but
like I said, it was, it was huge. Was its
head was much bigger. I have one hundred and twenty
pound German shepherd, and this creature made my dog look
like an absolute puppy. Its four arms were awkwardly long.
It was almost as if you could see its muscles
in its biceps and its back legs. The hips were
positioned very awkwardly in a way that you wouldn't expect,
you know, a wolf, and they appeared to be much
bigger and more muscular. I thought it was perhaps deformed
in some way, And like I said, my brain could
not make sense of its shape at all until that
moment in my bedroom when it stood up like a man,
that it all of a sudden the shape it just
made sense to me at that point. But it was
It was not shaped like a man in the face
at all. It was very wolf like, very elongated, maybe
a bit wider than your average wolf.
Speaker 2: I don't want to put words into your mouth, but
if it looked very wolf like in its head, study
did it have a very wild look to it or
would you describe it as looking some other way?
Speaker 1: It absolutely looked wild it other than its eye, its
eyes were extremely intelligent. I felt like it was speaking
to me without words. Specifically in my bedroom, I felt
as though I was being given intuition. I've heard from
Dan that you know, some people feel like they're speaking
to them telepathically. I in no way heard words, but
I was given intuitive feelings, you know that, especially in
my bedroom, that this creature wanted me to behave exactly
how I did in the woods.
Speaker 2: As you know now, it's not just you. A lot
of credible eyewitnesses report that sense that they're being communicated
with telepathically or via some other means, So it's not
just you. When you had your second encounter in your
bedroom that night, how close was it, Tiya? When you
first saw it?
Speaker 1: It was probably about six feet away from my bed,
And if my memory serves me correct, it didn't actually
step into my bedroom all the way. It stayed right
outside of my doorframe. And it was so big when
it stood up, I mean, it took up a lot
of the doorway. It was clearly very much bigger than
my stepdad.
Speaker 2: Someone that stood up. You're saying it could stand up
in the doorway without it said, actually touching the doorway.
It was just close or was it crouching to be
able to stand up in the doorway.
Speaker 1: It didn't go all the way through, so it was
still partially on the other side, so it was not
you know, if it was in, you know, directly in
the doorway, its head would have touched the doorframe.
Speaker 2: Surely, Okay, I see, Yeah, thanks for clearing that up
for me. Did you ever hear your parents mention finding
signs of forced entry in your home the next day?
Speaker 1: No? No, And I became very paranoid about that. That
is something I do remember very clearly, and I became
very diligent at making sure our windows were closed and
our doors were locked. I definitely had this sense that
the dog man or the creature that I believed to
be a spirit of the forest, that the one I
had an occurrence with was okay with me, but that
the others were absolutely not, and I was very much
afraid of the others.
Speaker 2: Well, I'm glad at least he found solace in him,
whether he was safe to be around or not, at
least he found some solace. And yeah, as long as
that's a case, I guess that's a good thing. Whatever
it takes to get you by.
Speaker 1: Yeah, And you know, maybe my intuition wasn't correct, But
when I did get brave enough to go back to
the woods and leave my offerings, I started with smaller
ones and worked my way up to bigger ones, And
remember stealing some raw meat from our fridge to leave
out there, and they were always taken. But you know,
when I would hear a creature staying close to me
and matching pace that was big but staying out of sight,
I felt that it was guiding me or protecting me
in a way, and I felt it was protecting me
from the others. But I also thought, you know, if
my home life were to happen to me in the woods,
that that guide would protect me. And as an adult,
I look back and I, you know, I don't know
if that was the case. It very well could have
been watching and waiting in a not you know, protective way.
It could have been hunting me for sports or trying
to scare me, and I was just happy, go lucky
and didn't realize I was in danger. It very well
could have been trying to terrorize me and cause fear.
But for some reason, that is just not what I
internalized is happening at the time.
Speaker 2: Well, how you looked at him back then might have
been unwarranted, inaccurate, however you want to put it, But
at least to help you get by, you're still able
to go in the woods. Nothing did happen to you.
So whatever you needed to do to be able to
manage your emotions, as long as it helps you deal
with a situation like that, then more power to you.
As long as it doesn't wind up with you getting hurt.
Speaker 1: So thank goodness, Yes, and I have gone back to
those woods and other woods that are closer to my
home now, and I have had occurrences very similar to
when I felt that guide, where I could hear something
very close to me, and a few specific ones where
it was very clearly something large on two feet, and I,
you know, even believing that it could be the very
same creature that I once thought was a guide. I
in no way feel as comfortable as I did as
a small child. I do not seek out another face
to face interaction. And when I do hear a creature
following me, I do high tail it out of there,
and I do take it as a sign to not
go into that territory.
Speaker 2: I'm glad you do that. But just to clarify, when
you say you high tail it out of there, you
don't run, you just well absolutely yep.
Speaker 1: I maintain you know, I act like I don't hear it.
I don't acknowledge it. I don't even avert my eyes
to where I hear the sound coming from.
Speaker 2: Good I'm glad you do that. I'm never going to
say these guys are ever safe to be around, and
even ones that normally wouldn't hurt you, they can all
wake up and be having a bad day, so you
never do know, So I'm glad you do that. If
your parents would have found signs that your house had
been broken into, if they found damage like that, do
you think they would have told you back then?
Speaker 1: No? No, I don't think they would have. And you
know now that I've thought about it. There was another
thing that Dan thought I should mention to you. And
Dan does believe that these creatures have a special attention
for me, even though he's had his own occurrences. He
doesn't believe he has where they are still interested in him,
but he does believe they do in me. There was
an occurrence at our home at one point where we
found paw prints on one of our windows that was
about ten I believe, like ten to twelve feet off
the ground at our kitchen window. And I do believe
I have a picture of that somewhere where there are
two paw prints that were absolutely huge, bigger than our
German shepherd that as if something you know, had stood
there and leaned up against the window with muddy paws,
and that we'd never wash it off. We just left
it there and we never saw anything, We never heard anything,
but Dan firmly believes that it was a dog man
looking in our window.
Speaker 2: If you found them that high off the ground, then
the options of what it could have been are pretty limited.
But by pause, did they have any qualities that resembled
human hands or were they just strictly like dog paws
that were way too big?
Speaker 1: They were like dog paws, but maybe a little more
spread apart between the pads.
Speaker 2: Some my witnesses report seeing dogmen with paws slash hands
like that where it's like the toes are kind of extended,
but they still look like dog paws. Most of them
report seeing hands that look kind of like a raccoon's
obviously with claws, but they're We're not always the same,
So something to keep in mind. If there were no
signs of forced entry, how do you think it got
into your house.
Speaker 1: We lived out in the country, and though we had
a few neighbors, we were all very close knit and
knew each other well. And I don't believe my parents
locked the doors, and that's why afterwards I became the
diligent person of the home to make sure we were
locked up that night.
Speaker 2: Yeah, that's always a good idea, not just if you
have dog men in the area. You never know when
some crazy person might try to come in, so that's
always a good thing to do.
Speaker 1: Yes, And as Dan said on your show before, he
definitely is one to really advocate that all doors are locked.
Speaker 2: Oh yeah, him and a lot of other people. You
wouldn't believe him. Many times I've been contacted by people
who live way out and they talk about how until
they listened to my shows, how they used to leave
the doors unlocked and their windows open, but not now
out uh uh, they lock all their doors, they check
their windows and shut those drapes. I understand, yes.
Speaker 1: Yes, And you know, having the occurrence where you know,
they came into my home that definitely instilled that in me,
and I think it did with Dan as well. But
you know, it's it's hard to know, you know, when
you have these experiences and you see these creatures firsthand,
it is very hard to differentiate how much more animal
and how much more resembling a man they are, because
though they look wild, though they look animalistic, the intelligence
in them is absolutely uncanny and hard to fully grasp,
you know. So, you know, locking your doors is so important,
but I think also just being aware of your surroundings,
and that's something that I learned, you know that I
don't just use when I am in the woods, but
even going outside of my home to doing something very quick.
I very much was impacted by that experience and making
sure that my eyes, my ears, all of my senses
are aware of my surroundings.
Speaker 2: Like I've said before, that's always a good idea. I'm
glad you do that. I really am. You said a
couple of times, you look at that dog man as
possibly being your spirit guide. And if it is your
spirit guide, it's a spiritual being. If it's a spiritual being,
then what good do you think it's going to do
to lock your doors and windows?
Speaker 1: And this is where me and Dan kind of differ
a little bit, where you know, I don't. I don't
truly believe anymore that it was, you know, a ghostly spirit.
I think maybe they are or could be spiritual guardians,
but in a very real physical form. I do believe
that I have seen, you know, a lot of evident
in terms of not just having eyes on them, but
seeing you know, the hand or paw prints and hearing
them when they were near me. Where I do truly
believe they are a physical being, but I do hold
the possibility that there could be a spiritual aspect of
them as well. But I do believe they are a
very raw physical being.
Speaker 2: Yeah, there's so many questions like that about them. We're
probably never going to know. But it really does make
you wonder when you used to sneak under your parents'
bed at night, poor thing, could you sleep halfway well
or was it hard for you?
Speaker 1: It was still very difficult for me. I did feel
it would, you know, be very easy to drag me
from under the bed, so I would be curled in
the fetal position and trying to surround myself with stuffed
animals so I couldn't be grabbed. Well, we know that
wouldn't stop anything from grabbing me, but you know, I
had a little bit of comfort. But I think the
comfort was that if something did come after me, it
would wake my parents.
Speaker 2: It is absolutely horrible that you had to go through that.
That is awful, you poor thing.
Speaker 1: Yes it was, you know, it was absolutely petrifying. But
I did live in a home where I was, you know,
very familiar with fear, and so I do think I
internalized this fear a little bit differently than a child
who was in a healthy home where it was just
kind of normal for me to be afraid. Like I said,
the hardest part for me was the gas lighting and
the not being believed, being made to feel crazy. That
definitely affected my healing process from this experience and others
very significantly.
Speaker 2: Well, you had some bumps in the road along the way,
but I'm just glad you wound up where you are.
You're well adjusted in you've fully come to terms with
your encounters, so as long as we can say that,
thank goodness.
Speaker 1: Yes. And I do think a big part of that
was sharing my story with somebody, both with Daniel and
with you. And I hope that any listeners who are
hearing my story understand the gravity of just holding their
experience for themselves and the truth that is theirs, whether
they plan on sharing it with anybody or not. I
do know that sharing it has helped me immensely. Even
though I don't hold as much fear and intimidation as
I know and a lot of other people with encounters do,
it still impacted my mental health. It impacted how I
felt about myself and my confidence, and I think it
is just so important to honor our truth whether that
is talking with somebody else, listening to other stories. I
certainly you know Dan has put me on to listening
to your podcast. I'm going to be honest with you,
I have not up until recently, I have not done
research into dog Man. I had no idea what the
hands or pause looked like for dog Man until you
just explained it to me right now. And I feel
like there is a lot of healing in validation, whether
that is sharing your story, listening to other stories, and
just honoring your own truth.
Speaker 2: It's awfully admirable that you wanted to come on for
those reasons. A lot of people they wouldn't have card
at all if they could help people. So I'm really impressed.
I am, oh, you're welcome. When you used to leave
offerings for him, what would you leave?
Speaker 1: At first? I would steal scraps from supper, you know,
cooked meat and stuff like that, lunch meat. And then
I started to kind of test it because I felt like, well,
any creature could take that, right, so I would start
to bring larger things. I would. I do know a
few times I would steal like steak, you know, if
we were getting ready for a big cookout. My parents
had a lot of big parties, so they would have
vast amounts of meat in our fridge at some point,
so one missing steak for those events was never really noticed.
I do know one time I stole a roast from
the freezer. Oh no, I don't remember if that was
noticed or not, honestly, But so I would leave meat
for this creature. That is what I would leave for offerings.
But I did leave a lot of other offerings to
creatures in the woods as well, so you know I would.
I would lean vegetables for other creatures, and nuts and
shiny objects. I was that little kid who believed in
so I would leave little bowls of cream, and I
would bury treasure beneath special trees and stuff like that.
So but my offerings to dog Man it was strictly meat.
Speaker 2: Yes, what a nice kid you were. It's no wonder
you grew up to be the person you are today.
I swear if more people in the world were like you.
Of course you're never going to admit it, but this
world would be amazing if more people were like you.
That's a fact.
Speaker 1: I appreciate that, Yeah, definitely, you know, it's you know,
people like me. We have to learn to have our
own claws and teeth, and you know, being a nice person,
it also is a learning process of learning when not
to be nice, And you know that is something that
I think I have learned from Dan and accepting my
own encounter story where you know, there are certain experiences
where you need to be still, you need to be calm.
Certainly my encounter with dog man, I think having a
soft demeanor helped me beyond measure. If I was any different,
I don't know if it would have gone that way.
But it is also very important to be able to
embody those things. And there are moments where I need
to have courage where I go back in that space
and time. And if I can handle an experience like
that as a small child, then I can handle a
lot with a human. So I think there's a lot
to be said that can be transmuted into strength in
these occurrences.
Speaker 2: I really like the way you think, I really do,
And yeah, I think it's a given that by having
those experiences they did help strengthen you. I hate the
fact you had to have those experiences, but I don't
think there's any doubt that you're a stronger person today
because you have those experiences back then. Thank you, You're welcome.
You don't seek out encounters, you said, But if you
had your drother's crystal, would you still like to see
them one more time again from a distance, or would
you rather never see them again? No matter what the circumstances, I.
Speaker 1: Would like to never have a face to face occurrence.
I don't think it is necessarily something that they seek out.
That was not something that I felt was an ideal
situation for these creatures I encountered. I did not get
the sense even when I was assessed and analyzed and
they watched me and my reaction, I still don't think
they wanted me to lay eyes on them. So in
that sense, no, I would never want to have another
face to face encounter. I have no desire to see
a dog man ever again, though I do hold a
lot of respect for them. No, I mean in terms
of validation, I think I've had enough of that as well.
Where I believe what I saw, I don't seek any
more proof. You know, maybe with that specific creature that
I encountered, if it was capable of words, you know,
I would have some questions I would like answered, But
you know that's just not going to happen, and I'm
glad for that. I think it's okay, I'm I'm these
are memories that I will cherish that might not be
cherishable memories. It very well could have been danger. But
though I am thankful for the way child Crystal internalized
this and the comfort that I sought from what I
believed to be a protector in the forest, as an adult,
I do not believe that that. I just I don't
believe that I would handle the situation the same.
Speaker 2: Oh No, you definitely wouldn't. You're a different personnel. But
I still do think because you're so well adjusted, that
you deal with it a lot better than what you
think you would.
Speaker 1: Yes, if it was the you know, the specific one
that I felt I had a connection with, you know,
having an encounter, I don't know. I would be curious.
I would be interested in how that would go, but
I am no way would ever seek that out. No.
Speaker 2: Well, that's probably a good thing then, and we don't
have to agree upon everything. But I think you're wrong
about stumbling upon it and surprising it. Like I told
you before, i'd bet good money that if it didn't
want you to see it either time you never would
have seen it in my opinion, But I could be
wrong about that, but yeah, yeah, I just I don't
think it's a case of you catching it unaware. I
think it wanted you to see it both times and
that's why you saw it. But like I said, I
could be wrong.
Speaker 1: Yeah, you know, And that's a perspective I didn't really
hold in till I talked with you, And you know,
I do agree with you that that makes a lot
more sense. You know, it could probably hear my heartbeat
for you know, before I could even lay eyes on
it and be able to make out what it was.
So I do think there's a lot of truth to
your perspective on that, and that is something I have
been internalizing. You know, I didn't really hold I hadn't
really thought of that until you mentioned it. And yeah,
I'm curious as to why it did that, you know,
like I said, I'd have questions for it. You know,
why did it do that? You know? And you know
it's posture change and it's softened state. You know, I
have why, you know, so many big whys. Part of
me questions, you know, was was this a female? Did
it have some strange maternal instinct with me. Could could
it smell my injuries that I had from my parents?
You know, there's so many different aspects, you know, coming
into my home. Were they aware of the fighting and
screaming and crying, you know? Or or was it completely unrelated?
Was this just something that occurred because I was in
its territory? And those are questions that I just I
will forever ponder.
Speaker 2: I can understand why you would, but as you know,
unfortunately those are all questions that we're never going to
have the answers to you. It's just one of those things.
But having said that, we're about out of time, Crystal,
before we get out of here, do you have any
closing comments you want to put out there for us?
Speaker 1: My closing comments are just to the listeners who have
had an experience with dog Man, anything else that is unexplained,
or even just with another human that has a heart
of a monster. That your story is your truth and
nothing can change that. Being believed is not so something
that you need. It is your story and yours alone.
And if there is ever something that is too hard
to hold on yourself, get help, talk to someone, reach out.
And this podcast is an amazing resource to connect with
other people. As I've heard with Dan and his experience
with you and being able to connect with other people
who have had encounters, I think there's a lot of
healing there.
Speaker 2: Very well said, I really do hope you never change.
I really do.
Speaker 1: I'll try not to.
Speaker 2: Well, I hope you don't change. But having said that,
thanks again so much for coming on and share the
details of those experiences with this Crystal. I really do
appreciate it.
Speaker 1: Yes, you're welcome, and thank you so much for having me.
Speaker 2: Oh, you're welcome. Glad to give you a platform. Well,
thanks again so much for your time, and have a
great nights.
Speaker 3: English