The Aswang

Aswang is the most famous mythological creature in the Philippines folklore, they been around before the Spaniards came in the Philippines.

They being feared besides their appearance, they eat people, mostly preying on pregnant women, new born babies, sick, dying and dead people, they can infect people and turn them into Aswang as well.

Aswang attacking a goat

Aswang's appearance and ways to harm or kill it's prey are what make them unique, the most common reported appearance of Aswang is in a form of a big dog, cat and pig, and what I mean by big is, it is not a normal average size of these dog, cat and pig you will find in the Philippines. with blood-shot eyes and feverish breath they known to attack backyard animals like goats and chickens, most probably if Aswangs are not successful in attacking human prey. and mind you there have been report of Aswang attacking a poultry where chicken's blood been sucked dry and internal organs all missing, and they are sure it's not some kind of nocturnal animals attacking this poor chickens because they found human fingerprints in the crime scene.  

Aswang are allergic to garlic, afraid of crabs and thorns, and in old times before guns where not that common in the Philippines, buntot pagi a whip made of stingray's tail is a tested weapon against Aswang, and they can be pierce with pointed bamboo spear and can be hacked with bladed weapons too.    

Aswang's existence had been dominant especially in the Visayas region of the Philippines, they been known locally as "tik -tik" for the Hiligaynon folks and "wak-wak" for The Cebuano folks.

While the whole country was contained by the fear of Aswang, a curious folk named Maximo D. Ramos tries to classify these Aswangs into five types, these are ghouls, vampires, werebeasts, viscera-suckers and witches. his aim is to preserved and educate the Filipinos of one of it's dominant beliefs, the belief in Aswang.