In the Dark of the Night

I was down at my neighbors' last night, just getting ready to go home when we heard a horse neigh very high pitched and eerie. It was almost a scream. After a second time we decided to go investigate. There are 12 horses on two contiguous ranches with three foals presently, so we were thinking maybe one of the babies had gotten itself stuck under the fence. They do that sometimes, rolling around on the ground. So off we went with a flashlight to have a look.

The first paddock we came to the mare was screaming and running wildly back and forth, stopping at one side to look up the hill into the trees, and then bolting off again. This scene repeated itself in every corral, and at the end we had a head count with everyone accounted for and no mishaps. After the very first horse though I began to squirm. There are three things likely to cause a horse to behave like that.

1. another horse loose outside the paddock
2. a mountain lion
3. a bear

We didn't see or hear another horse. While there are bears in the larger area, we've never seen one in our neck of the woods. We do though, have mountain lions. We've seen them, seen their tracks and heard them from time to time. One neighbor now gone swore one attacked his goats, and we're reasonably sure one took down a calf two years ago. And we're two middle aged women walking around in the dark with just a flashlight? Good plan...

We got back to the house and I opened the door to my car, only to have an ANIMAL leap straight at my face!!! Picture panic, shouting, Olympic leaps and so forth. One of the ranch cats had climbed through my half open window and settled down for a nap on the back seat. My door was the only way out, since I opened the one with the window down.

You should SEE the nice new set of grey hairs I have this morning!