A pair of brave Lincolnshire firefighters successfully rescued a dog that wasn't breathing from a burning Lincolnshire home. On the afternoon of February 4, a crew from Lincolnshire Fire and Rescue was called to a house fire in Arthur Street, Lincoln.
Though the residents were not home, their dog, Lottie, was still inside. The fire had been caused by a candle left unattended - something that is "easy to do," but can have "catastrophic" consequences, according to Lincoln South fire station crew manager Kenny McLaughlin.
The team entered the smoke-logged home through the back door to the kitchen, wearing breathing apparatus. While others worked to extinguish the fire, two firefighters, Katie and Richard, administered oxygen to the little white dog, whose coat had turned black from the smoke.
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Lottie wasn't breathing and spent 20 minutes hooked up to a special pet CPR mask before showing signs of life and reopening her eyes. An emergency vet was called and the pooch was placed in an oxygen tent overnight.
After a series of observations and tests, the vet let the family know that Lottie was expected to make a full recovery. Mr McLaughlin added: "Although we are used to rescuing people and animals from properties, the effects of smoke on small animals is often too much for them.
"In fact, the vet commented that in 15 years of witnessing pets pulled out of house fires, he had never seen one recover. We’re so pleased that Lottie has been one of the lucky ones and that she is on the mend, but also that this incident was prevented from being much worse."
The majority of the fire damage was contained to the dining room, though the entirety of their home suffered smoke damage. Mr McLaughlin said: "This is a timely reminder to always make sure you blow out candles when you leave a room or use LED candles instead."
