Adopted SPCA dog saves family from fire

Teresa Fridd with her dog Maggie, who alerted the family to a fire at their home, in Havelock North last Wednesday. Photo/ Duncan Brown.

Six forceful barks saved a family who were fast asleep from what could have become a raging house fire.

On Wednesday last week at about 12.30am a tiny smouldering ember rekindled a fire in the Fridd's woodshed, which then latched on to the guttering around their family home.

The family woke to a series of loud barks from their dog Maggie and when the son looked out of his bedroom window all he could see were big orange flames.

His mother, Teresa Fridd, said the fire had jumped to the house, which was about two feet from the woodshed.

"My husband ran outside, grabbed the garden hose and managed to put the fire out in the house guttering before the fire engines arrived and got the woodshed under control."

Mrs Fridd said if it wasn't for Maggie they may not have been standing in their pyjamas in their undamaged family home at the end of the night.

"She really is our superhero at the moment and who knows where we could be right now if she hadn't alerted us."

The family adopted Maggie from the SPCA when she was a puppy and have had her for two-and-a-half-years.

Mrs Fridd said Maggie was a pretty special dog and must have heard the crackling or the melting metal from the woodshed and realised it wasn't a familiar sound.

She was three rooms away from where the fire started but still managed to sense something wasn't right.

"She was knowledgeable enough to wake someone up so they could see what was going on. The situation could have ended up so differently."

During the episode, Mrs Fridd said Maggie was pretty scared so one of her sons sat with her as well as their cat.

Mrs Fridd said she used to be a real rat bag when she was younger but had turned into a "gorgeous dog".

"We are so thankful to her. We said from now on we wouldn't talk about the what if's but thanks to her we have lived to tell the tale."