Hero Dog Wakes Texas Family During House Fire: ‘We Are Eternally Grateful’

A Texas father is praising his family’s newly adopted dog after she woke them in the night to alert them their home was on fire.

Last month, Dr. Richard Kretschmann met the stray pooch near the TLC Complete Care emergency room, according to KIII.

“Seemed skinny cold, one of the colder nights, kind of concerned seemed like a stray, hungry, tired, got her some blankets,” Kretschmann said. After the pair formed a connection, the doctor and his family took the dog in and named her “PJ,” short for Peanut Butter and Jelly.

Recently, the family was fast asleep on a frigid night when PJ made her way into Kretschmann’s bedroom. 

KIII reports:

“Dog came in and was pawing at the end of the bed,” Kretschmann said. Melissa woke up and said what’s up pooch? Pretty adamant scratching kind of unusual and she got up and smelled a little smoke. She looked down the hallway and said hon, the house was on fire.”

He and Melissa were able to evacuate the children and PJ from the blaze that Kretschmann believes was started by a space heater.

While Kretschmann and his family are starting from scratch, he told KIII that they are eternally grateful for PJ.

“We’re eternally grateful, we got our family — and the dog is now definitely a part of the family — and we definitely owe our lives to her,” he said, per the outlet’s video of the interview.

PJ is one of a few hero dogs who have made headlines lately. Just last month, Breitbart News reported that a dog in Kansas helped keep his owner’s father alive after the man fell on his steps and was knocked unconscious. While lying in the cold, the pooch named Diesel climbed on top of the man, keeping him warm in freezing temperatures until he was able to phone for help.

Also, in January, a dog in New Hampshire led authorities to the scene of a rollover car crash involving his owner, Breitbart News reported. A New Hampshire state trooper dubbed the pooch a “real-life Lassie.”