A dog was saved from a house fire by a specialist oxygen mask made just for pets.

Fire crews arrived at the house in Mildmay place after neighbours rang the emergency services to find the family living in the home were not in at the time but their pet dog had been overcome with smoke. The fire crew took the dog to safety and used the specialist equipment, which had only been donated that morning to help revive the dog and return it to it’s owner.

The mask had been provided by not-for-profit organisation Smokey Paws, following a donation from His Royal Highness, the Duke of Kent, who after hearing about the fire said: “I am delighted to hear that the animal oxygen mask that I donated to Sevenoaks fire station with the help of Smokey Paws was used to save the life of a family pet so soon after it had been delivered.”

Kent Fire and Rescue Service received its first masks in November 2015 and since then they have been used on pets in Faversham, Sheppey and Sevenoaks. KFRS have a total of 47 oxygen masks available at 40 of it’s fire stations, however there are 17 other stations yet to receive one of the special masks, including Margate and Aylesham. The masks were supplied by Smokey Paws, a non-profit organisation that gets all it’s money from public donations and company sponsorship.