She only comes up to your shins, but it was the unrelenting bark of little Knesha that Joel and Carol Ford credit with saving their lives.
"That's our little hero," said Joel Ford, holding the Shih Tzu-Yorkshire terrier mix by a leash in front of the couple's burnt-out home in Clarkston.
The Fords were asleep earlier this month when Knesha started barking and wouldn't let up. It turns out the 21/2-year-old heard the beginnings of a fire in the home and kept her woof going until she could rouse her owners.
"She just kept barking," said Joel Ford, who noted the continued growl was out of character for the canine. "She knew something was wrong."
The Fords and Knesha made a quick dash for safety that early morning as the fire erupted on the 700 block of 10th Street. The couple, their dog and a cat all escaped without injury.
"As soon as she got out she just licked us all over," Carol Ford said. The dark-haired member of the family with floppy ears and a penchant for licking "hello" hasn't gone far from her owners' sides ever since.
Fire crews have thus far been unable to determine the fire's cause, but said the blaze isn't considered suspicious. The Fords said they believe it started in the kitchen and burned into the home's attic before dropping portions of the ceiling and causing smoke and water damage throughout the structure.
A tarp now covers the roof, with burnt pieces of tin sheets littering the property's side yard. Firefighters told the Fords their roof was placed over about five layers of shingles and hindered crews in combatting the blaze. Thankfully, the couple said, the building Carol Ford describes as her dream home didn't suffer any structural damage.
The Fords admit the ordeal hasn't quite hit them yet. Their Christmas tree is still standing inside a front picture window, though several personal items were burned or damaged by the fire.
Other items were saved, including Christmas presents the Fords were planning to give to family members. The home's chest freezer was moved and plugged in elsewhere so the food wouldn't be ruined.
But the Fords say they are most thankful no one was injured, and want to spotlight Knesha as their guardian angel.
"She was spoiled before but she's really spoiled now," Joel Ford said.
"Last night we gave her a bite of T-bone steak," added Carol Ford.
The couple, both recently retired, stayed a few days with family before moving into an apartment while the house is repaired and renovated. The Fords are planning to reunite with their home this spring.
Their routine with the animals likely won't change all that much in the interim, though Carol Ford admits Knesha will get a certain amount of special treatment after the animal's act of heroism.
"She gets her little treats after she goes walking with Daddy, but we are really spoiling her now," she said. "She won't let us out of her sight."
McClatchy-Tribune News Service
