Stories of people doing extraordinary things for small animals have been circulating recently, and they’re seriously melting everyone’s hearts. There’s the woman who ran over an endangered frog with her lawn mower and spent countless dollars flying him across the country for surgery. There’s also the woman who spent $500 on her store-bought goldfish when she noticed that he was choking on a pebble.
For these firefighters, helping out small animals affected by fire and smoke is just a part of their job. When a fire broke out in a Florida home earlier this year, Polk County Fire Rescue was there in time to put out the flames and make sure everyone, including the animals were alright.
Although no humans were harmed in the fire, they informed the firefighters that their guinea pig, Rodney, was still in the house amidst the blaze. Fireman John Williams wasted no time and ran into the house to save the family’s small pet.
When he brought him out, Rodney the guinea pig was safe from further harm but had already inhaled quite a bit of smoke. He needed emergency oxygen, but the firefighters didn’t have the special oxygen masks made specifically for small animals.
In lieu of the small mask, the firefighters retrieved and used the mask made for small children and babies, which worked just fine for Rodney. A spokesperson for the department assured The Dodo that they are equipped with masks for dogs on their truck.
As for how Rodney is doing now, Kristi Waller told The Dodo,
“He is doing good! I’m so incredibly thankful for Polk County Fire Rescue for saving Rodney. They were very nice to him and myself. I have the utmost respect for firefighters in the first place, but to see them care so much for something so small because of what he meant to our family was truly moving.”
Unfortunately, not all animals are as lucky and are often injured or killed in similar disasters. According to Project Breathe, an organization dedicated to donating small masks for pets of all sizes to fire stations, about 40,000 to 150,000 animals die in fires every year, mostly from smoke inhalation.
If you want to help out Rodney and his family with their recovery, you can do so here.
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