Two tortoises died from smoke inhalation after knocking over their incubator lamp while trying to mate, and destroying the conservatory where they lived.
The Daily Mail reported that the lamp, used to heat the conservatory where the two tortoises had been hibernating, set fire to wood chips, destroying the conservatory and damaging a nearby garage.
The tortoises, Henry and Alice, had recently woken up from hibernation. It is thought that Henry had been chasing Alice around the tortoise lair and must have knocked the lamp over while doing so.
Their owner, Alf Clayton, praised the Cleveland Fire Brigade crew who extinguished the fire in Thornaby, Teeside, in a matter of minutes. The firefighters said the tortoises would have perished from smoke inhalation and would not have suffered.
Perhaps pets need protection from fire as much as people do.
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yes, they do.. and fire insurance is a must… I have bird in my house… I could not leave her un-attended, as she could start up a fire by biting electrical wires and creating short circuit…animals like a babies need constant attention…
As completely ridiculous as this story is — completely, completely, ridiculous — I do suppose there’s a vaguely sensible lesson in there somewere. Passive Animal Fire Protection products: otherwise known as a cage.
It could happen in any premesis if animals are left to strut around freely without putting any restriction on them. If there was some truth in the Daily Mail reporting then something should have been done to keep those tortoises away from lamp. Such hazard is everywhere !!
yes, Rob… in my case I do love my bird… but I keep her in the cage… better safe than sorry… same way would you let your toddler wounder around? I do not think so… you keep toddler in playpen… same rule should apply for animals… my old dog love to chew electrical wires… I keept her in the boarded area…
yes, but in some way, our human nature we trust nothing bad will happens and try to treat animals – like we treating ourself … thinking they are smart… not soo… as in my case I learn my leason hard way… one day I have no power as my dog chew few wires and fuze box -kick in… turning off power… after this day I keep my dog in borded area…
I agree, it seems there should have been a barrier between the animals and their heat lamp. Those lamps get very hot and if there is anything combustible in contact with it, it doesn’t take long to spark a fire.
Animals have small brains and we are looking after them – not the other way around… think ahead and safety must apply in any case… when dealing with animals…