CHARLACK, Mo. — A St. Louis County family is rebuilding after losing several pets, along with their home, in a recent fire.
Three more pets survived and now require specialized care.
For Carla Browning, coming home is a bittersweet feeling.
“It’s no fun starting over again trying to replace everything,” Carla Browning said.
Browning was at work on Leap Day when her neighbor called and told her that her house was on fire.
“The first thing I asked on the phone was, 'Did you get my pets out?'” Browning said.
“We love our babies,” Stephanie Derhake-Cress. “They’re part of the family and they always will be.”
By the time the smoke cleared, Browning and her husband lost six cats in the fire.
“As they brought each cat out they were all gone,” Browning said.
“Losing those six pets I know it just broke her heart,” Derhake-Cress said.
The two pets that survived the fire had to be rushed to Veterinary Emergency Group in Brentwood.
“Tabitha and Ginger both went to the vet hospital that night and spent 24 hours under oxygen,” Browning said. “Ginger is still coughing up a little bit and everything.”
“Mom doesn’t have those extra funds to spend on a large vet bill that is even growing because, excitingly enough as it is a week later, they found one missing cat they hadn’t been able to find that was hiding out in the basement,” Derhake-Cress said.
“Her throat was extremely inflamed,” Browning said. “She wouldn’t eat for four days. She didn’t want anything to do with any food.”
Though they have insurance, that doesn’t cover the cost of the specialized vet care for their surviving animals.
If you would like to help them out while they get back up on their feet, click here.
