Lost Luna

Me??  Lost???

Can you see me now?

Well, okay it was only for about 10 or 15 minutes, but that was long enough. 

Monday nights are dog club nights.  We leave home just after 6, and don't get back until sometime between 10:30 and 11.  Between getting all the agility equipment out and setting it up, taking a set of lessons (flyball), or now that those lessons are done, will be practising flyball, teaching a lesson (agility), running some courses with the dogs, putting all the agility equipment away, giving the dogs some free time to play or fetch or whatever in the arena, and then being the ones to stay and lock up, well it makes for a long night.   And that was one long sentence:)

Since this time of the year we leave home before dark, when we get home we have to go out and shut in the chickens and feed Pride.  Quite often Larry will head out to the horse shed to look after Pride, and I will shut the chickens in.  When I went to the north coop, the light was already out, so I turned it on to check on things, and then forgot to turn it off.  Luna was with me.  When I went to the south coop, she ran down as usual and went under the coop, and then when I was done I called her out of the field with me.  In the alleyway she could smell that Larry had been there, or could hear him, as I saw her glance that way, and I thought she might go out to see him and Pride.  Oh, I forgot to mention that it was pitch black and pelting rain.  I headed back to the north coop because I realized I had left the light on.  As I was heading back to the house I met Larry, and realized that Luna wasn't with him.  So we whistled and called, expecting her to come running.  No Luna.  Figured she had somehow ended up in the south field and was back under the chicken coop.  No Luna.  Then thought she must be locked behind the barn.  No Luna.  By this time we are soaked, wandering around in the pelting rain with our feeble little flashlights, only able to see a short distance in front of us.  I go to the house and make sure she hasn't got inside somehow (maybe Meredith let her in?)  No Luna.  Check around the front of the house.  No Luna.  Check the chicken field again.  Still no Luna.  Larry heads back out to Pride and wanders around that whole area, calling and whistling.  No Luna.  I have been calling and whistling, and just can't understand where she could have gone in those few minutes, and panic is setting in.  I head back out to the north coop, and there I see her face at the window!  Talk about a sense of relief:) 

When I had gone back to turn out the light, I had opened the door, stepped in and turned to the right so I was facing back out, reached up above the door and turned the light off.  Then I stepped out and closed the door behind me.  Luna had probably come in on my left as I was turning right, and I didn't realize it, and then I had shut the door on her.  Anyway, no chickens or dogs were harmed in the process, thank doG! 

All's well that ends well!!