Kacey Musgraves Gives Thanks For ‘Brave’ Dog, Who Saved Her From Stepping on Venomous Snake: ‘Copperhead: 1, Pepper: 0’

If a dog is really a woman’s best friend, then Kacey Musgraves‘ adorable Australian Cattle Dog Pepper is more like a guardian angel. The singer revealed in an Instagram Story on Sunday that Pepper “honestly saved me” when the “Deeper Well” star almost stepped on a rattlesnake with her bare feet while on a walk with friend recently, according to EW.

“Copperhead: 1, Pepper: 0,” she reported sadly about the snakebite the pup endured from a Timber Rattler — which is venomous and whose bite can be lethal to humans — while trying to protect her. “Got her to the vet quick” Musgraves added about the dash to get Pepper a dose of antivenom alongside a video of the dog with an IV line. “The bite made her lethargic. Those who have Blue Heelers know they ain’t ever this calm.”

“Pepper update: She’s home and sleeping a lot / on pain meds and getting lots of love,” Musgraves wrote. The post also reportedly included pics of Pepper snuggling in bed with her, clearly worse for the wear as evidenced by a red mark on the dog’s snout where the snake struck. “This is wild but the vet was showing me how the inside of her mouth and all down her neck is so bruised from that damn snakebite,” Musgraves wrote along with a snap of Pepper’s lip pulled back to show angry-looking discolored skin. “Thank God for good dogs,” she said.

Though it didn’t include any action pics, Musgraves took to Instagram again on Monday (Oct. 28) for a photo dump of her month so far, writing, ” Here’s to seeing twilight more often – whether you get up for it or are already up , more sunrise rides (and coffee on said sunrise rides), fresh sourdough handmade by a friend, brave dogs that save you from stepping on a rattlesnake you didn’t see on your back porch, new songs, and all the other little sprinkles.”

The photo roll included snaps of Musgraves riding horses at sunrise with a friend, chilling with Pepper on her lap in the recording studio and giving the pup a nice pet on the head, working on a new song seemingly titled “Back on the Wagon” and, as mentioned above, baking sourdough.

Musgraves is in the midst of her Deeper Well World Tour, which will hit the Scotiabank Arena in Toronto on Nov. 7, followed by shows in Baltimore, Pittsburgh, Louisville, Brooklyn, Houston, Dallas and Austin through the end of the month.