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Good Samaritan helps save dog's life in Scappoose house fire

The homeowners had made it out safely, fire officials said, but not their two pet dogs. Only one of them survived the fire.

SCAPPOOSE, Ore. — A Scappoose family is grieving the loss of one of their two pet dogs that was killed during a house fire Thursday night. 

At around 11 p.m. Thursday night, Scappoose Fire was dispatched to a report of a house fire in the 5200 block of 3rd Street near Oak Street in Scappoose.

Upon arrival to the scene, the homeowners had made it out safely, fire officials said, but not their pets. 

Eric Zwald, a Scappoose police officer, told KGW he jumped over a fence and smashed a window in the back of the home to let some smoke out. He then located both dogs in a back room. 

The first dog was removed within 10 minutes. The second dog was removed minutes later.

Zwald was on his hands and knees giving one of the dogs chest compressions and oxygen after being pulled out from the back of the burning house. 

"As soon as the first dog, the Pitbull mix, was brought out.... I worked side by side with an Oregon State trooper that was also on scene,” said Officer Zwald. “Making sure the dog was getting the necessary oxygen."

Scappoose firefighters are trained to give pets CPR. So while they put the fire out, they were also giving officers a rundown on what to do. 

"When the other dog was brought out, the smaller dog, I began the chest compressions on that particular dog,” said Zwald. “And then a good Samaritan came in and also lend a hand and doing breaths and things like that." 

"I learned how to do CPR on pets on YouTube," said Guy Auker, the good Samaritan. 

He was driving home from work when he saw the fire, and decided to stop to help. Auker knew exactly what to do. 

"What was going through my head was that these animals need help,” said Auker. “I am a flight attendant for Horizon Air and I've been trained in CPR and so it was just natural  — with my training — it was just natural."

Auker is now urging others to learn how to do CPR on pets — in case it's ever needed. 

"At that very second I was just hoping and praying that there was going to be a happy ending of some sort out of the situation,” said Zwald. 

“Like I said, unfortunately, the one animal didn't make it, but seeing the other animal, perk up, breathing and reunited with its owner again, it was a silver lining at the end."

The cause of the fire is currently under investigation.  

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