Content Notes: wildlife encounters, chronic illness references, medical monitoring (EEG), strong language, winter safety discussions
Welcome Back to the Den
The lights are low, the rules are flexible, and nobody here expects you to be brave on command.
This is The Crippled Cryptid.
A soft-lit corner of the internet where disability, chronic illness, service dogs, and everyday survival exist without apology.
If you’re new here, hi. I’m Sky.
Professional cryptid.
Unwilling amateur cyborg 2.0
Occasional chronic illness and disability advocate and content creator.
Medically interesting enough to make half my providers sigh when they open my chart.
I sigh too. Then I ask for coffee.
I live in a haunted meat suit with a deeply suspicious warranty, spend a lot of time in Bed Jail™, and am almost never alone thanks to my medical alert service dog, Luna.
Part guardian. Part shadow. Part “excuse me, Mama. Sit down, right now.”
Followed up by a much louder, “Who the fuck told you that you could ignore me?” Yes. She is a very sassy spirit guide. Yes. I trained her to be that way. But, when your body throws up red flags like gang signs and you’re notorious for ignoring all of them, that’s the kind of energy you need.
Then there’s M&M.
My constant. My Player 2. The one who gives the 90% when I only have 10. Garden gremlin. Best friend. Luna’s personal treat‑dispenser.
This space is about showing up for ourselves even when our bodies refuse to cooperate.
Chronic illness without inspiration porn.
Disability without apologies.
Love without pretending it’s always easy.
Returning cryptids, welcome home.
New cryptids, pull up a chair.
The Lunatic Café is open. The Den is big enough for all of us.
On today’s menu: a wild visitor wandered across frozen water.
The Sighting
This morning, my EEG camera screamed at 6am that its battery was dying. Two days of promised juice? Reality laughed.
M&M whined.
I rolled out of bed ready to fight God.
I don’t like mornings.
I also struggle with insomnia, and having an EEG strapped to my head did me zero favors.
But that wasn’t the only thing waking the neighborhood.
A local resident near Stanton Bay, across from Fox Lake Hills, reported seeing a large animal on the frozen lake standing near their dogs on the ice while they were outside. At first glance, they thought they were going crazy at first. Until their husband saw it too.
Then they thought gray wolf. Maybe coyote.
They did everything right: called the dogs inside, kept their distance, and filed a report with the Illinois Department of Natural Resources.
Let me say this clearly because I don’t praise responsible humans enough on this blog:
we respect responsible pet owners. Thank you for keeping your animals safe.
Timeline of Sightings
- 8:15am: First sighting by resident and spouse
- 10:00am: Animal seen again running and pausing across the ice toward Fox Lake
- Later: Neighbor photos showed a massive coyote‑like animal, nose‑to‑nose with a 70lb dog and dwarfing it completely
Locals quickly started calling it a coywolf. I had never heard the term before, and part of me loved it immediately.
So, your ghoul did what she’s best at. Research.
Coywolves are real hybrid canids, often a mix of coyote, wolf, and sometimes domestic dog. They tend to be larger, heavier, and more adaptable than the coyotes most people picture.
Photo Evidence from the Frozen Bay
- Neighbor Photo #1:
Rounded ears, thick chest, long stride—definitely not a typical coyote.
- Comparison Diagram:
Reality Check
Here’s the grounded version:
- True wolf‑coyote hybrids in Illinois are extremely rare. Most experts classify sightings like this as large eastern coyotes.
- Winter coats make coyotes appear significantly larger than in warmer months.
- Behaviorally, they are opportunistic hunters, following prey and moving through suburban areas when food is scarce.
Yes, it’s wild. Yes, it feels mysterious.
But it could still be a regular coyote. A very impressive one.
Identification Clues (Coywolf vs Coyote vs Gray Wolf)
- Head shape: Coywolves often have a broader skull and thicker muzzle than coyotes.
- Ear shape: Rounded or slightly smaller relative to head size.
- Leg build: Stockier, heavier bone structure.
- Tracks: Larger, deeper, longer stride spacing.
- Movement: Coywolves may appear more deliberate and confident than typical coyotes.
And I don’t want anyone getting any reckless ideas about hunting or chasing this animal. That is not what this post is about. Because you will never find me telling you to hunt down an innocent animal for sport, that is not who I am. It never has been, and it never will be.
He hasn’t hurt anyone. He hasn’t attacked pets. Wildlife often comes closer to neighborhoods when resources thin out. They are looking for food, shelter, and survival, not conflict.
Identification from photos alone is never fully certain. Reporting unusual sightings to wildlife authorities matters.
Fox Lake Context
Fox Lake and the Chain O’ Lakes transform in winter. Frozen waterways and snow‑covered shorelines create natural travel corridors for wildlife. Coyotes follow prey animals along these ice highways.
Winter doesn’t create new predators.
It simply reveals paths we don’t usually see.
And as someone who has lived in this area my whole life, this is not the first coyote that I have seen or heard of. He isn’t doing anything wrong. He isn’t hurting anyone. So, I think that right now, he just needs to be left alone.
Luna Field Notes
Luna, my sassy little spirit guide, has been alert all morning:
- Heightened environmental scanning
- Silent pacing by windows
- Nose to wind, ears forward
- Focused attention on the tree line
Her reactions remind me that wild things are always paying attention, and maybe she’s quietly teaching me to do the same. Especially since M&M and I have noticed some strange pawprints in the yard lately, meaning that we too are going to be extra vigilant.
Luna is not allowed to go outside to potty alone.
Especially right now, even if it is just a coyote. Her safety is our #1 priority here. Always.
Pet Safety Tips
If you live in the area or notice increased wildlife activity:
- Keep pets indoors at dawn and dusk
- Do not leave small dogs unattended outdoors
- Remove outdoor food sources, including open trash or uncovered pet food
- Supervise larger dogs near wooded edges or frozen waterways
- Report unusual sightings to local wildlife authorities
And yes, I’m going to say this gently but firmly: if it’s 24 degrees outside and you’re freezing, your pets are freezing too. Bring them inside.
Of course, this doesn’t go for every dog type.
I know some of you own Huskies that would rather die than come inside but, with a coyote or possibly a coywolf out there, you should be bringing them inside anyways.
Cultural Reflection
Coyotes appear as tricksters and teachers in several Indigenous traditions, including Ojibwe, Métis, and Iroquois stories. They move between spaces, observing, adapting, surviving.
For me, watching Luna watch the tree line feels like a quiet reminder to pay attention. Respect boundaries. Notice patterns. Listen to the land.
This reflection comes from a place of admiration, not ownership. Cultural stories belong to the communities who carry them, and I mention them here with respect for the wisdom they hold.
Closing Thoughts
We are not alone here.
We need to remember that.
Because before man and technology moved through this land as if we owned it, Mother Nature owned this world. The more we build here, the further we encroach into native habitats. Which means we’re going to be seeing more wildlife. I think that we should respect them more than we do. I think we should remember that we are cutting down their trees, stealing their land, and destroying their homes.
Wild things move through the same spaces we do. Ice remembers footsteps. Trees remember stories. Sometimes the line between myth and biology thins just enough that you feel it breathing.
If you’re local, keep your eyes open and your pets close.
Supervise. Respect. Observe. Report responsibly.
As for me, I’ll be here in the Den, watching the tree line with one eye and Luna’s blue‑and‑brown gaze with the other, wondering what story just wandered across our frozen lake.
Love you. Now say it back.
–Sky
© The Crippled Cryptid
Disability, honesty, and a little chaos.
🔗 https://linktr.ee/skylanarissa
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