SPANGLE, Wash. — Seven dogs, including five puppies, died in a barn fire Thursday morning near West First Street and South Rock Street in Spangle, Washington.
According to fire crews, eight dogs were in the shed when the fire started and one dog, the mother of the puppies, was able to escape the flames. No one was at the home when the fire started and people were not injured, fire officials said.
Laura House and her daughter, Faith, went to check on the dogs earlier in the morning and said everything seemed fine. Then, a neighbor started pounding on their front door and alerted them to the fire at about 10 a.m.
"I tried to run into the room where the puppies were, I tried to get to them," Laura said. "But there was already smoke and flames and stuff and there was nothing we could do."
A neighbor kicked open one of the barn doors allowing Coco, the mother of the puppies, to escape.
"We're very grateful for the firefighters and our neighbors and stuff, and we're just devastated that this happened," Laura said.
Coco, the surviving dog, suffered second and third-degree burns and is recovering at a vet clinic. The family is not sure what caused the fire but wonders if a heat lamp in the barn may have malfunctioned.
According to fire crews, they were able to contain the fire quickly before it spread to other nearby properties. They said the shed was declared a complete loss.