Duluth Firefighters Praised for Rescuing Family’s Pets

Here's a story that will hit you right in the gut if you're a fellow animal lover who has several pets in your house, like we do.

Praise is coming in-- and rightfully so-- for several Duluth firefighters who went above and beyond the call of duty to help rescue a family's pets during a house fire recently.

According to this TwinCities.com story, the fire broke out last Thursday night. Neighbors alerted the family to the fact that their garage was on fire. They were able to get out of the house unharmed, and they were also able to grab one of their cats on their way out of the house, the story said.

However, that still left another cat, along with a cockatiel, still trapped inside the burning home. The family told responding firefighters about their beloved pets still left inside, and watched as firefighters went to work putting out the blaze.

That's the first priority, of course-- getting the fire extinguished. But to their extreme credit, about an hour later, the story continued, firefighters emerged with their pet bird. And, then awhile later, another firefighter emerged with their 18-year-old cat.

However, the elderly cat had apparently inhaled a lot of smoke and wasn't doing well when he was first rescued. A situation like that is taxing for any animal, but being 18-year-old made it even more dire for their pet. The family then watched in amazement, though, as that same firefighter began to gently administer oxygen to their cat, who, in a few minutes, was back to himself-- and wanted to bolt into his owners' arms.

The story quoted a Duluth Assistant Fire Chief Chris Martinson with saying, "We teach people not to go back into a fire for their pets and to trust that we’ll do our best to get them out,” the story said. "We try to save lives, no matter what kind of life it is,” Martinson noted in the story.

Which is incredibly cool. I have the ultimate respect for the brave firefighters who will run into a burning building while the rest of us run out. And to have them exhibit that amount of respect for this family's beloved pets, is outstanding. If you have pets (and love them as much as we love ours) you know how tough it must have been for the family to know two of them were still trapped inside. But, thankfully, this story has happy ending. Well done, Duluth Fire Department!