SILKY terrier, Rosie, may not make much of a guard dog but she protected her family's East Launceston home when a fire broke out in the lounge room on Tuesday morning.
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Owner of the Berean Street home, Malcolm MacDonald, was woken about 2am when Rosie started jumping on him.
Malcolm's son, Rowan, said his father then woke him and his sister to alert them to the fire.
"Dad went out into the lounge room and noticed the fire had started," he said.
"A log had obviously fallen out of the fire even though we had the guard up and it caught alight.
"We threw water on it and eventually called the fire brigade because it got up underneath the mantle piece.
"We did have fire alarms but the batteries were either flat or not working so thanks to Rosie we got up - she's definitely a hero."
Two Tasmania Fire Service units attended the fire and took the opportunity to remind all householders to ensure smoke alarms were fitted and operational and checked regularly. Damage to the house was estimated at $5000.
- EMMA WEBB
