UPDATE: South St. Fire Dogs' Vet Bill Paid

Just a few hours after a call went out to the community seeking help for a Needham resident who lost his home in a fire, one local resident paid his pets' veterinarian bill in full.

The two dogs, Woden and Spirit, were inside the home at 1079 South St. when a fire broke out in the kitchen around 2:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 19. Both the resident, who was cooking at the time, and his two pets were able to get out of the home safely, while Needham firefighters arrived to put out the fire.

Animal Control Officer Danielle Landry was called in to help with the dogs and transported them to Highland Animal Hospital for treatment while the owner stayed with his home.

But with the house estimated to be a total loss after the fire, the man was in no position to pay his pets' veterinarian bills.

That's where the community came in.

On Friday morning, Sept. 20, Needham Patch ran an article about the two dogs, putting a call out to the community for donations to be sent care of the animal hospital.

And the community responded.

"I think we got like four or five calls early this morning," Highland Animal Hospital receptionist Lauren Murphy said Friday. "One person called at like 8:15, right after we opened, and took care of everything."

Murphy said it's not the first time people have responded positively to animals in need.

"Whenever there's this type of situation going on here with animals, people are always so generous," she said.

Woden and Spirit, both husky mixes, smelled strongly of smoke when they arrived at Highland Animal Hospital, Murphy said. Both of them received chest x-rays and baths to remove the dirt and smoke, which could be harmful if they licked it.

Murphy said the dogs were "just really stinky, smelling of smoke," when they arrived, but also that "they were happy from the get-go."

"They're doing very well," she said. "The owner actually came and picked them up last night."