The demonic animal has sometimes been reported to walk upright on its hind legs, while at other times it’s seen running on all fours
Cambridgeshire is well equipped with strange mythical creatures, interesting facts, and bizarre stories. You may have heard of some of them before, from the Fen Tiger, a mysterious big cat said to roam the Fenlands, or a lantern man described as an atmospheric ghost light.
One Cambridgeshire village is believed to be haunted by a demonic creature described as half dog, half monkey. Reported sightings, apparently dating back more than 100 years, have been spotted around one particular road near the village of West Wratting.
The creature is known as the ‘Shug Monkey’. It is said to have the body of a jet-black shaggy sheepdog and the face of a monkey with staring eyes.
The road reportedly once haunted by ‘Shug Monkey’ can be found on a street that leads from the village of West Wratting to nearby Balsham called Slough Hill Lane. Sometimes the demonic animal is reported to walk upright on its hind legs, while other times it’s seen running on all fours.
According to Mysterious Cambridgeshire, by Daniel Codd: “Children would avoid the place after dark in the 1900s, but quite what this shaggy-haired monstrosity’s exact status was is unclear; it does not appear to have been thought of as an animal such as a Yeti-type creature, or even an escaped primate.”
The Shug Monkey is thought to have origins in Norse or Viking mythology, like many other ghostly creatures from the region. The fascinating creature also shares characteristics with another folkloric creature of East Anglia called Black Shuck.
Tales of Black Shuck describe a ghostly black dog seen roaming coastlines and countryside in the region.