Interesting thread - this isn't my primary area but it overlaps with some MIB research I've been doing around Louisiana's old rail corridors, so I'll throw in my observations.
The Illinois Central lines running through the bayou parishes have accumulated a disproportionate number of unusual encounter reports going back decades. Whether those are Dogman-specific is harder to confirm, but the clustering pattern is real. Old rail infrastructure tends to follow natural geographic features - ridgelines, river valleys, wetland edges - which are essentially the same corridors large predators and, arguably, cryptids would naturally use for movement.
There's also something worth considering about the electromagnetic component. Rail lines, especially older ones with degraded infrastructure, can produce measurable EMF anomalies. Some researchers theorise this might either attract certain entities or potentially affect witness perception. I'd want to see someone systematically cross-reference sighting coordinates against decommissioned versus active lines to test whether the activity concentrates differently.
The MIB angle is actually relevant here - several compelling Dogman encounter accounts I've reviewed involved subsequent visits from unusual individuals discouraging witnesses from discussing what they saw, which suggests someone considers these sightings significant enough to manage.
Has anyone done proper GIS mapping on this? I'd genuinely be interested in seeing whether the rail corridor clustering holds up statistically or whether it's confirmation bias from reports naturally originating near populated areas that happen to follow rail routes.
What regions are you seeing the strongest correlation in?