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Given that it's REAL electricity jumping over the Monster, I'd think the right guess is that it was always intended as a dummy shot. Unlike the similar shots in SON OF F and GHSOT OF F where the "electricity" business is cheated with camera angles, there's really an electrical arc zapping on the body here.

The debate went on and on over at CHFB, but the gist of the consensus was

1) Eddie Parker isn't in this film-- or GHOST OF FRANKENSTEIN, of HOUSE OF DRACULA, or SON OF FRANKENSTEIN, as has been reported over and over through the years. He IS in FMTWM, but doubling Chaney as the Wolf Man in the fight; Gil Perkins doubles Lugosi as the Monster (and in the big CU in the ice.)

2) the mask & dummy in the shot above is the same as is seen in the scene in the ice cavern (the hands & fingers are in a similar stiff position)

3) The mask here appears to be the same as seen in a number of on-set gag publicity shots from ABBOTT & COSTELLO MEET FRANKENSTEIN, with Glenn Strange (in make-up) and Lenore Aubert with some little guy, either comic Bobby Barber or the film's director, Charlie Barton, wearing the mask, The details of the mask appear to be taken from a life mask casting of Lon Chaney's face.

4) Given that this mask makes its first screen appearance in 1944 in a film in which Chaney does not play the role, some of us theorize it probably predates the film, either back to GHOST (there's at least one doubled shot, with the Monster on the bridge over the Visaria street), or maybe even the initial pre-production period of FRANKENSTEIN MEETS THE WOLF MAN, at the time when Chaney was expected to play both roles and would obviously need a double in some shots.

Strange is not carrying a dummy in the finale of HOUSE, btw, it's a stuntman named Carey Loften (whose arm is in DUEL...!)

I'm not sure torgaman's arguement holds up regarding Strange-- he spends most of the film laying down-- but other than this one dummy shot, he's in full make-up.