The following was recorded by the former vicar of this little village, and probably dates from some time in the late 19th century:

"A story that was considered a foregone conclusion was also fully accepted as fact. A large black dog always appeared as a harbinger of woe in someone's important estate when a death was sure to occur. A parishioner who ridiculed such ideas as a rule, was determined to test this sign of ill omen. He said he distinctly saw a large black dog of unearthly dimensions on the road to Wangford. But as this happened on a Saturday night, after some conviviality had taken place at Wangford, there may have been some definite cause for the report. I think, however, the death of someone important did take place soon afterwards and acted as a confirmation of this aforementioned vision.''

Rev. Arthur Ashton: 'Fifty Years' Work in a Suffolk Parish' (Sole Bay Printing, 1996; orig. Robinson & Co, 1936), p.74-5.

(Thanks to Dale Peck for bringing this to my attention.)