A Marietta man is grieving his 3 ½ -year-old boxer — the “best dog in the world” — who saved him from his burning home but perished in the fire early Tuesday.

Scott Dunn’s home in the Blackwell community near the intersection of Chastain and Canton roads caught fire around 3:30 a.m. Tuesday. When Cobb firefighters arrived, the brick ranch-style house was already engulfed in flames.

Dunn said he wasn’t feeling well Monday night and fell asleep on his sofa after watching the kickoff of the Monday night football game, his dog, Duncan, fast by his side.

“Duncan was covered up with me, and I fell asleep, and the next thing I knew, he was poking at me and barking,” Dunn told the AJC. “Normally, that means he needs to go out, but when I woke up, I couldn’t see because there was smoke.”

Dunn said he put on his pants and boots, found his truck keys and cell phone and grabbed Duncan by the collar, then ran out of the burning house.

“When I got out the front door, the flames went everywhere,” he said. “I got in my truck, started it and backed it out of the carport and realized I had [Duncan’s] collar and he wasn’t there.”

Dunn said he started to run back into his house, but neighbors who had come over after seeing the flames “told me not to, and I said I had to get Duncan. When I got in the door, it was too hot and I couldn’t go in. I tried to go in, but I couldn’t.”

Fire officials haven’t determined what caused the fire, which destroyed Dunn’s house on Joel Drive.

Dunn, a subcontractor who does remodeling, said he has been going through some tough times, and his gas had been cut off about a month ago.

He said he had been sleeping in the living room of his home and using a space heater during the recent cold snap.

But he said the space heater was the only thing plugged into that circuit and was on a ceramic pad with nothing within four feet that could catch fire.

Despite having lost everything but the clothes on his back, Dunn was most distraught over the loss of his beloved Duncan.

“Anyone that knows me and has ever met Duncan knew he was the best dog in the world, and he didn’t deserve that,” Duncan said. “I should be there, he shouldn’t, but he saved my life.”

Firefighters later brought Duncan’s remains out of the house and buried them in the yard, Dunn said.

“They weren’t going to let me watch, but I refused that,” a tearful Dunn recounted several hours later. “I said, ‘that’s my dog and I want to say the final goodbye.’”

Dunn said Duncan had been badly burned in the inferno.

“You wouldn’t recognize him, but I still leaned down, gave him a hug and gave him a kiss, and four or five of the fire department guys started crying, but I wasn’t going to let my boy go out like that,” Dunn said. “That’s my boy.”

Scott Dunn grieves over his dog's grave Tuesday.

Buster tried to stop the bad guys.

When his home in St. Paul was burglarized, the 9-year-old boxer fought and wound up getting stabbed.

He suffered more than nine wounds to his chest, face and shoulder. His teeth were kicked in. His jaw was left exposed.

Sometime Thursday morning, at least one person broke into the home in the 1800 block of East Maryland Avenue while everyone but Buster – and two other furry companions – was gone. The burglar got in by breaking a kitchen window, said Brandie Wagaman, 16, who lives there.

When her father, Larry Wagaman, returned home that morning from a trip to Fleet Farm, he found blood throughout the house, Brandie said. Buster was found in his kennel in the basement.

“My dog fought them all through the house,” she said. “He pretty much saved our house. If he wasn’t here, they would have took more.”

Guns and Anoka County Corrections Department shirts were taken, said St. Paul police spokesman Howie Padilla. The shirts are tan and have department patches on each sleeve. Under one patch is an American flag.

Padilla noted that wearing one of the shirts to impersonate a law enforcement officer would be illegal.

Julie Smith, Brandie Wagaman’s mother, said a laptop and a necklace were among other belongings stolen.

Police haven’t determined if more than one burglar was involved.

Two other dogs – another boxer and a miniature pinscher – were at home at the time of the burglary, Brandie Wagaman said. Neither of those dogs was injured.
Buster was taken to the University of Minnesota, where he was treated for his wounds. He underwent surgery on his mouth Monday at Life Care Animal Hospital of St. Paul.

“He will recover,” Smith said.

In St. Paul, reports of residential burglaries are up compared with last year. As of Sept. 30, there were 1,973 reports, according to police. In 2010 at that time, there were 1,793. In 2009 and 2008, there were 1,650 and 1,794, respectively.

“It’s horrible to know

Brandie Wagaman, 16, with Buster the boxer. The dog was stabbed at least nine times during a break-in last week. (PIONEER PRESS: RICHARD MARSHALL)
someone was in your house,” Smith said.

A fund for Buster has been set up at Wells Fargo Bank at 1379 Phalen Blvd., Smith said. It’s called “Buster’s Fund.”

Those with have information are asked to call investigators at 651-266-5616.

UPDATE: Unfortunately, Kayla the dog was found dead on the side of the road a few days later. RIP Kayla.

A Midlands, South Carolina man is asking for help after his company vehicle was stolen with his 11-year-old dog in the passenger seat.

James “Scotty” Johnson says he doesn’t go anywhere without his Boxer-Pit Bull mix Kayla. On Saturday, Johnson was doing some yard work for the company he works for when someone stole his company vehicle with his dog inside.

“Every single day she has been with me. Everybody that knows me if you saw me you saw the dog. I know I am getting a little choked up but she’s my daughter,” said a teary-eyed Johnson. “I have a daughter that’s eighteen months old and this dog has been there ever since. This dog has probably kept me and my wife through some tough times together.”

Johnson says he left Kayla in the front seat with the truck running. The truck is a two door, blue, 2007 Nissan Titan valued at $27,000. He says more than $5,500 dollars of lawncare equipment was attached to a trailer behind the truck. Johnson however, says he just wants his dog back.

“I may never see her again. I’m crying over my dog. I don’t want the truck back. I just want my dog back. I hope somebody sees it. I’m on TV crying over my dog. Please help me get my dog back,” said Johnson.

According to the incident report from the Columbia South Carolina Police Department, a .38 caliber derringer pistol was also in the glove compartment.

Officers put a call out over the radio to try and locate the car but were unsuccessful. Columbia Police have assigned an investigator to the case and are continuing to look into this matter.

If you have seen the truck, trailer or dog, please call Crimestoppers at 1-888-CRIME-SC.

Story by Elaine Furst for Dog Files

Flat-faced canines can no longer fly Cathay Pacific.

As of Monday, the airline has banned the so-called brachycephalic breeds due to concerns that certain types of short-nosed animals have an increased risk of breathing problems and overheating due to the stress of flying.

According to the airline’s travel advisory, the ban comes out of concern for the “negative health impact to the animal” caused by air transportation.

Banned are popular breeds such as Pugs, Bulldogs, and Boxers.

Cathay Pacific is the latest airline to ban snub-nosed dogs, following similar moves by Singapore Airlines, American Airlines and Delta Airlines.

The move comes a year after the U.S. Department of Transportation released figures detailing the number of in-flight canine deaths between May 2005 and May 2010. Their results showed that short-faced dog breeds such as Pugs and Bulldogs represented about half of the in-flight dog deaths.

Thomas Lau, Cathay Pacific’s assistant manager of public affairs, said that the move was necessary.

“The ban is to bring Cathay Pacific into line with industry practice because it has been found that there is quite a bit of danger,” Lau said.

While Cathay Pacific’s measures appear to have the animals’ best interests at heart, Hong Kong’s Society for the Protection of Animals (SPCA) believes that the ban is an over-reaction.

“We understand that they must have some statistics that certain breeds of dogs are more problematic in the cargo cabin, but there are cases when air travel is unavoidable, especially when owners need to emigrate,” said Rebecca Ngan, PR and communications manager of SPCA Hong Kong.

“If owners cannot send them in the cabin they may have to abandon them or put them to sleep.”

“A complete ban is quite difficult as it limits the routes where snub-nosed animals can travel,” said Stacy Tucker, director and owner of Ferndale Kennels & Cattery, a Hong Kong pet shipping company.

Tucker echoed the SPCA’s concern that the new travel ban would increase the number of dogs being euthanized or abandoned.

Story by Elaine Furst for Dog Files