Couple thought pet was killed in house fire
Staff writer
When their Lehigh home burned Jan. 21, Rick and Gina Mounts were heartbroken by the loss of their puppy, Bruiser.
When the couple returned to what was left of their burned home Jan. 22 to meet with an insurance agent, they called for their cat that should have escaped the fire.
Much to their amazement, there was Bruiser — sitting on the blackened remains of their bed — alive. The puppy was dutifully waiting for their return. Gina called for Rick to look. He thought she saw the puppy’s body until he looked again.
Rick had to drag Bruiser out of the house. The dog had lung and eye damage from the fire, so the family took him to a veterinarian.
Bruiser returned home Jan. 27, and Gina expects he will recover completely.
“He’s such a loving dog,” she said.
Bruiser was born the day after Rick was deployed to Iraq with the National Guard. Bruiser’s presence while Rick was away helped ease Gina’s worries.
“He’s very precious to me,” she said.
During the fire, the couple broke windows out of the house and called for Bruiser to get out of the burning building, but he wouldn’t come.
He was probably afraid he was in trouble because they were yelling for him to leave the house, Gina said Thursday. He most likely escaped the fire after a neighbor took the family away from the house.
Family recovers from fire
The Mountses have all the supplies they need, and insurance is working quickly, Gina said. The insurance agent they worked with showed them the faulty wiring that started the fire.
The family is looking at a house to purchase, she said.
Gina said she would encourage people to donate to the Red Cross. She hopes the organization can provide others with as much help as her family received after the fire.
“They were wonderful,” she said.