# Life sucks a little harder today: fire at Durham Region shelter kills 150 animals **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [December 19, 2008, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-sucks-a-little-harder-today-fire-at-durham-region-shelter-kills-150-animals/477867 "2008-12-19T04:51:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Kythereia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e8c25b/32.png) [@Kythereia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kythereia)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2008, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-sucks-a-little-harder-today-fire-at-durham-region-shelter-kills-150-animals/477867/1 "2008-12-19T04:51:28Z")
[News here](http://www.thestar.com/article/555723). > [@](#): > > “We could hear the dogs barking when we got there,” said Platoon Chief Neil Crouter of Oshawa Fire Services. “There were leashes inside the door so the firefighters grabbed them, then grabbed the dogs and handed them to police at the door.” > > Crouter said the dogs were further away from the fire, which was raging in the front part of the building, and that firefighters had barely enough time to grab a couple of cats in cages, he said. > > The other cats were “already gone,” overcome by smoke long before the flames reached them, he said. > > “At least they were asleep and didn’t feel anything.” > > Police officers comforted the rescued animals and kept them warm in their cruisers while firefighters battled the blaze, which broke out around 2:15 a.m. > > The cause of the fire is still being investigated. Damage to the 2,400-square-foot facility on Waterloo St. is estimated at $250,000. I had to take a moment over reading the morning paper today. This just… sucks. Really hard. ---
**Author:** ![Scarlett67](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scarlett67/32/7387_2.png) [@Scarlett67](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scarlett67)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2008, 4:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-sucks-a-little-harder-today-fire-at-durham-region-shelter-kills-150-animals/477867/2 "2008-12-19T04:57:15Z")
I did NOT need to read that just now. Dammit. ☹ Poor babies. ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2008, 5:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-sucks-a-little-harder-today-fire-at-durham-region-shelter-kills-150-animals/477867/3 "2008-12-19T05:11:20Z")
Awww. ☹ I used to live near there in Oshawa. I just googlemapped the area and there’s nothing that looks like a building with an outside fenced run; it’s all truck yards and scrapyards. The place must have been inadequate… ---
**Author:** ![Ponch8](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ponch8/32/9883_2.png) [@Ponch8](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ponch8)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2008, 6:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-sucks-a-little-harder-today-fire-at-durham-region-shelter-kills-150-animals/477867/4 "2008-12-19T06:26:52Z")
Does anyone remember the _Unsolved Mysteries_ episode in the 80’s about some asshole who set a kennel on fire, killing dozens of dogs? Did they ever have an update to that story, saying the guy got caught? ---
**Author:** ![Hal\_Briston](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a9a28c/32.png) [@Hal\_Briston](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hal_Briston)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2008, 2:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-sucks-a-little-harder-today-fire-at-durham-region-shelter-kills-150-animals/477867/5 "2008-12-19T14:25:46Z")
> [@Ponch8](#): > > Does anyone remember the _Unsolved Mysteries_ episode in the 80’s about some asshole who set a kennel on fire, killing dozens of dogs? Did they ever have an update to that story, saying the guy got caught? [Nope.](http://www.pawsofnature.com/pages/pon_history.02.htm) ☹ > [@](#): > > In 1987, after the shelter relocated to Bonne Terre, Missouri, there was a tragic arson caused fire which killed all the dogs at Martha’s Animal Sanctuary. Even after the television show, Unsolved Mysteries, aired an episode on the fire, the arsonist was never apprehended. ---
**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2008, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-sucks-a-little-harder-today-fire-at-durham-region-shelter-kills-150-animals/477867/6 "2008-12-19T14:41:45Z")
Update: [the mice did it](http://www.thestar.com/article/556245). ---
**Author:** ![Wile\_E](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/c37758/32.png) [@Wile\_E](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wile_E)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2008, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-sucks-a-little-harder-today-fire-at-durham-region-shelter-kills-150-animals/477867/7 "2008-12-19T17:16:08Z")
It’s very sad to hear about things like this happening at shelters that are trying to save the pets. Pasco county animal services is currently having to suspend dog adoptions due to an outbreak of canine distemper, so far 30 dogs have had to be euthanized. ---
**Author:** ![Rysto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ecccb3/32.png) [@Rysto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rysto)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2008, 6:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-sucks-a-little-harder-today-fire-at-durham-region-shelter-kills-150-animals/477867/8 "2008-12-19T18:29:13Z")
> [@Sunspace](#): > > Update: [the mice did it](http://www.thestar.com/article/556245). I’m a terrible, terrible person for laughing at that, aren’t I? ---
**Author:** ![Hal\_Briston](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a9a28c/32.png) [@Hal\_Briston](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hal_Briston)\ **Post date:** [December 19, 2008, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-sucks-a-little-harder-today-fire-at-durham-region-shelter-kills-150-animals/477867/9 "2008-12-19T19:06:44Z")
> [@Rysto](#): > > I’m a terrible, terrible person for laughing at that, aren’t I? I didn’t want to be the first to admit it, but I laughed too. All I could picture was a turbaned mouse, hiding in a cave somewhere in Afghanistan, loudly praising Allah when he received the news. ---
**Author:** ![Kythereia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e8c25b/32.png) [@Kythereia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kythereia)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2008, 6:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-sucks-a-little-harder-today-fire-at-durham-region-shelter-kills-150-animals/477867/10 "2008-12-20T06:00:07Z")
How dare you people! (I chortled a bit.) ---
**Author:** ![BrassyPhrase](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ea666f/32.png) [@BrassyPhrase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrassyPhrase)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2008, 6:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-sucks-a-little-harder-today-fire-at-durham-region-shelter-kills-150-animals/477867/11 "2008-12-20T06:34:24Z")
There was a very sad story here in the Houston area today. The barn where several trailriders kept horses was burned down (it’s arson) and 10 horses were basically killed in their stalls. I’m not a horse person, but I know people who are and the owners that were interviewed were just devastated. [http://www.khou.com/topstories/stories/khou081219\_jj\_stable-fire-southeast-houston.7a4c45d9.html](http://www.khou.com/topstories/stories/khou081219_jj_stable-fire-southeast-houston.7a4c45d9.html) ---
**Author:** ![Declan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ecae2f/32.png) [@Declan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Declan)\ **Post date:** [December 20, 2008, 7:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/life-sucks-a-little-harder-today-fire-at-durham-region-shelter-kills-150-animals/477867/12 "2008-12-20T07:05:30Z")
> [@Sunspace](#): > > Update: [the mice did it](http://www.thestar.com/article/556245). The mouseketeers posted a video on al jazeera taking reponsibility for the devastating first strike on feline agression. M Mouse, however bemoaned the death of the canine casualties, but felt that it was war and in war there is casualties. Declan