Thursday's Internet Edition, August 28, 2008.

“That poor dog was barking at the back door and they made no effort to chop the door down,” Sharon Starcher, a neighbor, said.

The fire that destroyed the Jerry and Robin Shafer residence at 817 Jefferson St. occurred shortly after they left to go downtown.

When they went to breakfast, they left behind their 1-year-old Miniature Pinscher, Toby.

Starcher was part of three neighbors, all women, who watched the fire from in front of her house, a short distance up the street.

Before the fire department got there, Starcher said two Spencer police officers arrived and saw flames coming from the front of the house.

They walked around to the back, where Starcher said the dog could be heard barking.

“They were more concerned about getting their shoes muddy,” she said. “That animal could have been taken out of there 10 minutes before the fire department got there.”

From what she has learned since the fire, Robin Shafer said tow truck operator Bucky Marks was at a nearby garage and saw the smoke. He came to the scene and offered to use an ax from his truck to break down the back door, before the police stopped him.

“They wouldn’t let him do it,” Shafer said. “I lost everything, but losing my dog was the hardest.”

Because the dog was in the laundry room with the door closed, flames did not reach him. He was curled up in a laundry basket when he was found dead, apparently from smoke inhalation.

“I never would have wanted anyone to risk their lives in a burning house, but I feel they could have opened a door or a window and let him out,” Shafer said.

“It was appalling,” Starcher said. “That dog was at the back door and they didn’t do a thing.”

And how did they know there were no people in there?” she asked. “There were cars parked there and it gave the appearance that someone was there.”

Spencer Police Chief Gary Williams said another neighbor had already told his officers that the family had left a short time earlier.

He said the officers did try to kick in the door, but failed.

He said their decision not to allow Marks to use the ax on the door was a judgment call they made at the time.

“They put their hands on the door and determined it was too hot,” Williams said. “We had a puppy dog perish in the fire and we’re upset about that, but they did what they thought was right at the time.”

Starcher said she had had firefighter training and knows about the danger of backdrafts. She said that was not a factor.

“The fire was in the front left corner of the house,” she said. “There was plenty of time to knock the back door down and get that pet out of there.”

Starcher said she has had trouble sleeping since the incident and blames herself as well as the officers for not doing all she could.

“I not only blame the officers, but myself, for failing to act,” she said. “I feel like I let my neighbors down when we stood out here and saw those men were going to do nothing.

“It will be a long time before I get over this.”

Shafer was still angry a few days after the fire.

“By all means, safety is the first thing,” she said. “I wouldn’t want anybody to go through a burning house. But I am very upset they didn’t even attempt to let him out.”