Kentucky Dog Kennel Fire Kills Over 25 Dogs, Including at Least 18 Puppies
More than 25 dogs, including six newborn puppies, were killed in a fire at a dog kennel in Bardstown in Nelson County, Kentucky, on Friday.
Ron Kraemer, the owner of Doggy Style Kennels, which raises, trains and breeds Labrador retrievers, was out buying dog food when the facility located behind his house caught fire. The blaze killed all dogs present, except for one who had just given birth to six puppies.
In an April 23 post on Facebook, the owner wrote: "I came home from town today with a load of dog food to find my kennels in flames. I have lost all my dogs and puppies except for Candy that somehow pushed her way through the gate."
"I had nine puppies in this kennel, six puppies there that were going out next weekend. And in kennel number four, I had nine black puppies," Kraemer told Kentucky's WLKY. "Can you imagine having 30 barking dogs right outside your door? It was a bad dream, and I still hear them, I still smell the fire."
"My phone rang," Kraemer recalled. "All I could hear on the other line, 'Your kennels are on fire!' And I said, 'What?' 'Your kennels are on fire!'"
The owner was still miles away from his home when he received the call and "it was way too late" by the time he arrived. "One neighbor said to me, 'We tried, we tried, we couldn't save any of them,'" he said.
"You can imagine how devastating this is. My dogs were my life. Please continue to follow my page...this will not be the end of Doggy Style Kennels," Kraemer wrote Friday on Facebook.
Kraemer has been "overwhelmed by the support" he has received over the loss of his dogs and kennels. "There are no words. Bless you everyone," he wrote Sunday on Facebook, where a video of the fire was previously posted, WLKY reported.
One person who had previously purchased a dog from Doggy Style Kennels set up a GoFundMe account to help raise funds for Kraemer. The account had received over $3,600 in donations at the time of reporting.
"Please contribute to Ron and this tragedy and help him rebuild his dream, and pay for the medical care for the one surviving dog who lost her litter," the GoFundMe post said.
The cause of the fire is unknown. Newsweek has contacted Kraemer, the Bardstown Fire Department and Nelson County Fire & Rescue for comment.
Other dog fire rescues
Back in late March, a dog trapped inside a Florida home "engulfed in flames" was rescued by a police officer who smashed the front door to help it escape. The homeowners were not at home at the time of the fire.
A deputy from the Flagler County Sheriff's Office (FCSO) was responding to a structure fire at a residence on Princess Dolores Drive when he heard "scratching from behind the front door," the FCSO said in a Facebook post sharing a video of the incident.
In February, a Chihuahua puppy was found alive 14 days after a fire destroyed an apartment building, leaving all residents without their belongings or shelter.
The puppy could not be found immediately after the fire but was discovered two weeks later on the second floor of the burned-out building by a man who was driving through the complex.
Back in December 2020, a homeless man in Atlanta saved more than a dozen rescue dogs and cats from a shelter that caught fire.
