Two dogs dead, 1 rescued from south Toledo house fire

TOLEDO, Oh. (WNWO) — Thursday was as ordinary a day as any other for Bell Fenter -- until he received a call that his home in Toledo's Old South End was on fire.

Nobody was inside, but the family dogs were. Two of them died as a result of smoke inhalation.

"I love them to death and I'm going to cherish their memories," Fenter said.

But the Toledo Fire Department found one more dog inside the burning home.

Foxy was still alive, though not doing well.

First responders performed CPR on the canine -- in short order, Foxy was back.

"It's a small token that we can do to take those steps to save those animals," said Lt. Matthew Hertzfeld with the Toledo Fire and Rescue Department.

Minutes later, there was an emotional reunion of Fenter of Foxy. He knelt to the ground, rested his forehead on the back of his beloved pet's head as tears welled in his eyes.

"She's my baby," he said, explaining that fire officials showed him video of them bring his dog back to life. "They took the time to bring her back. She was gone and they saved her."

A bittersweet day that left one man overcome by the joy of one life saved, and equally devastated by the loss of two others.

"They helped my family tremendously. There's nothing else I can say about it," he said. "They took the time to help my family. They took the time. They didn't have to and they did it anyway. Thanks to them, I got to save one of my dogs."

This was no ordinary day for Bill Fenter, who now looks forward to many more days with Foxy.