Last year when I was in California my mom took Keegan out for the nite to potty, and as she meandered out to the yard she froze, growled really deep in her throat and took off like a shot. My mom said she looked like a long red hot dog! She barked - my mom assuming she was chasing a bunny yelled @ her and she came back. (if I would have done that she would have ignored me ) The next day my dad went outside and the shed doors were open. Turns out someone had probably been in there when Keeg was outside, they got a chainsaw, weedwacker, and a can of gas. And now the shed doors are locked.

Sunday afternoon my dad went to my grandma's to get the grain truck to take up the road to load up the wheat that was coming off the fields. It was gone. They called around and no one had borrowed it, made a report with the sheriff. Thing that bothered us was that the person was there when my 85 year old grandma was there and waited until she went to church and then took off in the truck. (which had the keys in the ignition btw- ) B/c she didn't hear it go by the open window (being a semi it would have made a lot of noise) A neighbor said that they saw someone walking up the road with a back pack on and didn't think anything about it. Now he regrets it, and we suspect the guy probably slept in the barn and when my grandma left he was checking out the barn, and saw that the keys were in there - he probably thought it was a gift from God. Fast forward to Tuesday @ 4am. Phone rings, it is the Police Dept in Franklin Ohio, down in Hamiliton County. They caught the guy driving the truck, and he told the cops that my dad gave it to him. (I said technically with the keys in it you did ) He was from Bluffton Oh about 30 miles from my parents - walking - homeless - they aren't even sure if he gave the right name or not. Fast Forward again to Yesterday - my parents made the trip down to get the truck - after much yanking of chains and going here and there - paying a $300 towing charge - cleaning out the truck b/c the guy had been living in for 2 days - dirty underwear, dirty clothes, food wrappers, a bible, a water pistol that looked very much like a REAL gun and a couple of tools put together that could very well be a make-shift gun, after disenfecting the truck - it is now home, in the locked shed @ my grandma's and the KEYS are down the road @ my parents house!
My mom said - well we live in the country - you don't think you need to lock your doors like that anymore- I said you should know better after last summer - and we don't live in those times anymore......
I hope you start to feel better Liz. I'm sure the alarm will help....