In California, a little dog was saved from a prowling coyote when his friend, a 10 lbs. The Maltese, dressed in fur and cloaks of protection, summoned his instinctive wolflike nature to drive the predator from his yard.

It happened in a flash; just 10 seconds as Erin Macaluso recounted on Facebook.

After a walk at night, her and husband had forgotten to cover the door for the dogs.

“We are super vigilant dog owners,” she wrote. “Unfortunately, on this one night, we had just taken the dogs out to go potty, and forgot to put the cover on the doggie door.”

A fox slipped between the fence bars and Macaluso’s dogs went out to investigate.

They were a 12-pound Morkie, which is a mix between a Maltese and a Yorkshire terrier, named Harley, and Vinny, an 11-year-old Maltese with just three teeth.

Californians lose hundreds of pets every year to coyote attacks. They are unable to control their population because there are few predators that can keep them in check. As a result, coyotes regularly invade urban and suburban zones to steal cats and dogs.

In a video posted on Facebook, security camera footage shows a little dog immediately being chased around the yard by a coyote while another beast lurks beyond the fence. Then, a white knight bolts from the house towards the coyote and scares it away.

“Our little HERO Vinny is 10 lbs, 11 yrs old, and only has 3 teeth! But he’s always been scrappy,” wrote Macaluso in celebration of her tiny dog. In the post she encourages pet owners to never let their guard down. She claims to have lived in the town of Mission Viejo, California, for 30 years without ever seeing a coyote in the yard.

If that’s true, the one time she left the doggie door unlocked, the coyotes were ready to pounce.

Harley the dog suffered major injuries but will make a full recovery, the vets said.