If we had any doubt (and we did) that Savannah wouldn't bark if she heard something in the middle of the night, we have been duly corrected.
This morning at three o'clock, a pack of coyotes started howling off in the woods... and within two seconds, we heard loud barking/roaring/bellowing in the kitchen. Even though my husband and I both woke up from a sound sleep, we were pleasantly surprised and happy with Savannah's response to the coyotes. When we walked into the kitchen, Savannah was sitting up in her crate, very alert with her ears back, as if she were waiting to hear more noises from outside the house.
Being that Savannah was wide awake, and also considering her puppy stage, I changed from slippers to shoes and took her outside in the yard on a leash. It wasn't till I was out there, leash in my right hand and flashlight in my left, that the thought occurred to me that I was outdoors wearing pajamas in the middle of the night with every blessed creature/critter/insect that Mother Nature dropped into the state of Texas at the beginning of Time. However.... I did have this barking/roaring puppy to protect me, so I walked up and down the driveway, giving Savannah a chance to sprinkle the grass.
As I walked, after making sure there was nothing evil slithering around the driveway, I looked up towards the sky and saw millions of stars, all of the constellations, and every twinkling planet that was tossed out there in seemingly wild abandon by The Powers That Be. Gorgeous sky.... and I have to admit that this city-girl doesn't get to see the Texas sky very often because I don't sit out on our porch after dark. (Please refer to 'every blessed creature/critter/insect....')
Now that we have Savannah, however, life has changed. Sometimes puppies have to go outside in the middle of the night. And at six o'clock this morning, Savannah's roaring bark woke me up again... our outside cat Gatsby must have jumped down onto the porch from his sleeping spot on the picnic table, and of course Savannah's ears heard the thump of his cat-feet. (Both Border Collies and Great Pyrenees have excellent hearing.)
This morning, Savannah and I walked with JS up and down our road, along with J's tiny Chihuahua Bella and her daughter's dog Fritz... the three dogs met yesterday afternoon for the first time, and I think Savannah remembered them both when she saw the dogs walking towards her this morning. Savannah's tail started to wag and she gave JS a big puppy smile. I'm sure that Savannah may be missing her brother from her previous living arrangement... she and the male puppy were from the same litter and had been adopted together and spent every waking moment together in an outside dog run and kennel. Now that Savannah is on her own with us, she has to get acquainted with other neighbor-dogs, and all of our friends.
After just a couple of days, Savannah is still getting used to us and her new life in our home. (Inside our home, not outside in a dog run.) When my husband and I went into the TV room last night, Savannah followed us in there within two minutes... she stayed for thirty seconds, then walked back into the kitchen to get one of her toys... then she joined us in the TV room again. Our cat Sweet Pea wasn't all that thrilled with the arrangement, but he jumped from the back of the sofa to his three-tier carpeted cat-tower near the windows of that room, and then he seemed to be okay. Savannah is learning that the cats here are our cats and they not only belong here, but they were here first, and she will have to get used to that fact and learn to get along. So far, so good... Savannah hasn't chased the cats... but I do think she wants to play with them. That will be up to the cats to decide.
For now, Savannah has been the perfect puppy... and once again, I pray to the puppy gods that this spectacular behavior continues.
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