Becky and Rich Rigdon say they meant for their Rottweiler puppy's "protective instincts" to guard their home and two young children someday.
But "Butler" met that expectation in an unexpected way early Thursday. He alerted the sleeping family that deadly carbon monoxide was filling their home through a disconnected exhaust pipe on the 50-year-old oil furnace.The 4-month-old dog's agitated howling woke Becky Rigdon at 3:30 a.m.
Butler apparently was bothered by the smell of sulfur in the furnace exhaust, which was very strong on the enclosed porch where he spends the night, she said.
The dog scratched at the door and tried to dig at the floor, had to be coaxed outside and returned inside immediately.
After he ran out again and Becky Rigdon followed, the night air cleared her senses and she realized the smell of sulfur was heavy in the house - "like three semis parked in the front room."
Feeling nauseated and dizzy, the Rigdons gathered up Ricky, 3, and Monica Mae, 1, and escaped to a restaurant for a pre-dawn breakfast. They spent most of the morning away from home.
More than six hours after the oil furnace had turned off, a heating company's probes showed high carbon monoxide levels just outside Monica Mae's bedroom door.
"You take your kids, your family, for granted until something like this happens," Rich Rigdon said.
A new furnace was installed in the basement of the Rigdon home on Friday.