Woodward's hypothesis: Eyewitness accounts of werewolves can be explained using scientific research that argues that those who were suspected of being werewolves really suffered from an acute case of rabies. In contrast to Steiger, Woodward uses more academic and scientific evidence to support his hypothesis that werewolves do not exist. Among these are eyewitness accounts, etymological analyses of word meanings, historical accounts, published reports (which, like Steiger, he carefully documents within the text), and expert opinion.

Woodward asserts that findings in biological and anthropological science can provide rational explanations, namely, recurring epidemics of human rabies, for the werewolves people claimed to have seen in eyewitness accounts. As evidence, Woodward refers to several accounts, describing in some detail the claims of eyewitnesses. He then goes on to provide a scientific explanation for each trait or symptom commonly assigned to werewolves and...