My outside air conditioner comprssure unit stopped working. I just noticed two wires hanging out and it looks like they should be on the outside unit. The two wires have a red cap but one wire was hanging loose. We recently got a dog for outside and she is into everything... I think she may have pulled one of the wires out. The one weird thing I noticed is the wires are cut flush I don't see how they could have connected inside the red cap. Should I slice the wire a little to let them connect before putting the cap back on? Or should they be connected at all?

Look to see if a small piece of broken off wire is in the wire nut. If the wire is nicked when cutting the insulation, the wire will break off very easily and this is a thin wire. Strip about 3/4" off the end and put a new wire nut on all the wires. Put some type of cover over the wire so the dog can't get too it.