Mindanao villagers blame blood-sucking ‘sigbin’ for killing fighting cocks

sigbin
A mythical sigbin and slaughtered cocks. File photos.

Superstitious villagers in Minanao have blamed a mythical blood-sucking creature for the nocturnal death of 21 fighting cocks.

On Sunday (July 29), residents of Kauswagan village in Cagayan de Oro awoke to discover a scene of bloody carnage. 

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The villagers noticed unusual wounds on their necks and backs and concluded that the unfortunate cockerels had been attacked by a ‘sigbin’.

According to Wikipedia, the sigbin is a nocturnal creature resembling a hornless goat or kangaroo. It is said to walk backwards with its head between its hind legs, and to have the ability to become invisible. 

It is also said to suck blood from the shadows of its victims — which seems a somewhat redundant ability for a creature of the night.

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Joel Garbo, who was in charge of looking after the chickens, said the attack could have only been done by the vampiric animal.

“We suspect that a sigbin did this because the wounds are on the necks and backs,” he told Balita Pilipinas in Cebuano.

He also admitted that he had not got up to check on the birds, despite hearing the barking of local dogs and loud clucking during the night. 

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When asked if it could have been the dogs that were responsible for the nocturnal massacre, he dismissed this theory out of hand, saying the cockerels had never been attacked before. 

He also ruled out a human attacker, saying that although he did not leave his house to check on the commotion, he had peered through a window.

The owner of the fighting cocks has indicating that he does not wish to pursue the matter further, suggesting that sabotage by a rival breeder has also been ruled out. 

Belief in mysterious blood-sucking creatures remains widespread throughout the Philippines, particularly in rural areas. 

In 2015, for example, we reported on a man from Pasay City who thought an endangered pangolin scurrying on his roof was an ‘aswang’, another mythical blood-sucking creature.

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