Phantom Dogs

Now this is why I say a firm background in folklore is more important to ghost hunting than one in science:

I knew that, back in Medieval and other times, when a new graveyard was fashioned, a living person was often buried alive in a fresh grave to create a guardian spirit that was supposed to protect the area. If not, the first person buried there was thought to return as a ghost to perform these duties. Basically, the ghost protected the graveyard from the Devil and was hoped to dissuade grave robbers. These ghosts were thought to possess special powers which helped them serve their position. Many times, a living person was walled-up alive in new structures for the same reasons. This was a particularly common practice amongst the Celts.

What I did not know is that it was also common practice to bury large, black dogs!

Why is this important? Large, black, phantom dogs have been reported more or less worldwide, but are a particular phenomena in Europe. In fact, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes mystery, Hound of the Baskervilles, is based on accounts of these dogs. Sometimes they roam in packs, but just as often, they are said to be encountered singly. They are said to be huge, black dogs with glowing red eyes, and are sometimes called Devil Dogs or Hell hounds.

We know that there are ghostly apparitions of animals - could this be the explanation of these phantom, "Devil" dogs? Other possible explanations are far less reputable, such as that these dogs are part of the Devil's hunting pack.