Coyote Scare Tonight!

It took a half hour before I quit shaking!

Tonight I let the dogs out for their 10 o'clock run around the yard, and within minutes I heard the kind of barking that strikes fear into a dog lover's heart. Pepper and Suzie both sounded scared - panicked, even. Ralph, who goes on a rope when I let him out after dark, sounded angry. He's the only one large enough to defend against a coyote of any size, and he couldn't reach the others.

And the other voices that joined the fray sounded ominous. I know, it could have been a small coyote, visiting all alone. But it sounded like more than one, and that can mean death to domestic dogs.

Of course I started yelling at them to come back up the hill, then started screaming just some kind of noise in hopes of scaring the coyotes. Meanwhile, I remembered my fire crackers and ran back inside to get them. By the time I lit two of them my dogs were back at the door, looking relieved, and the "extra voices" had stilled.

I think that from now on, before I let them out for the night-time potty run, I'll go out and shoot a fire cracker or two. Knowing my kids have encountered intruders in the dark is just too frightening.