Revelers in the Rain

I love finding traces of forest animals !!...Paw prints, a whiff of skunk musk, rustling in the trees make me absolutely giddy with delight. While neighbors grow alarmed at the sounds of turkeys or coyotes, I listen intently savoring the treat & gathering information.
In recent months, our dogs have been stopping alongside the road to check out unusual spots...places that offer no visual ques of previous animals. We have wondered if it is skunk, possum, racoon... perhaps even a deer. Every now & again, we discover evidence of coyotes. Whatever it is, the dogs are transfixed & refuse to budge during their investigation.
The girls were not quite themselves last night as I walked them in the cold, rain. Both were in great need to do their business, but neither one would even stop to sniff. Juliette is an old herder who doesn't see or hear well. She no longer is able to do much of anything quickly. The size of a miniature horse, Blackie is the same age, but remains an alert & energetic lab. Surrounded by forest, both dogs started running back & forth in opposite directions. I stood in the middle of the road doing my best to avoid becomming ensnared in the tangle of black leashes. When Blackie started circling me, I thought, "This is ridiculous,we're heading back." We cleared most of the forest, when an ear-piercing voice split the night.... It was immediately followed by another & for a moment, I wondered if revelers were partying in the rain. The number of voices grew to a minimum of 5, at once & I am certain the number was greater still. The woops & yelps were clearly the cacophony of feeding coyotes, just near in our back forest. The dogs immediately turned for home, (which was in the direction of the pack), & we had some distance yet to travel along the upper forest. I will admit, as exciting as this was, even I grew a little anxious at the nearness of the action. My husband had been out front & met me at the top of our driveway. We raced to our back deck with flashlights in hand, hoping to perhaps catch the glimmer of reflection from eyes in the forest. The rain made it impossible for the beams to carry into the night. I am looking forward to daylight so that I may go investigate, but I fear the rain will have erased all evidence of the location.
(On a humorous note: I arise daily well before dawn & our motion-sensor light trips daily at 5 a.m. As I typed out last night's events, I took a break & headed out front just after the light had opened. For the first time, I actually hesitated a moment at the door. I walked back & forth in the carport, savoring the sound of the rain, when a dark shadow leapt within inches of my face! It was a ferral cat, with another one trembling in the hiding space behind some lumber. It gave me a bit of a start, followed by a wonderful belly-laugh at my own expense!)