A Jack Russell Terrier named Zippy is being hailed as a hero after he died saving his entire family from a fire that engulfed their entire Florida home.

On Tuesday morning, Leroy Butler’s Bradenton home caught fire at around 2am.

“By the grace of God we all made it out,” Leroy said. “The fire didn’t spare much. ‘I took a look up at the ceiling, and the ceiling is engulfed in flames.”

The fire appears to have started in the attic near the air conditioner of the home, which Leroy had lived in for 18 years. Leroy was in the home when the fire started along with his father and his two young children, who are aged eight and 12. Leroy said that though the home’s fire alarm sounded at first, it quickly faded. However, the family dog Zippy did not stop barking until everyone was awake.

“He was a part of the fire alarm, he was barking,” Butler said. “We just made it out the door while everything was collapsing, with a big plume of black smoke fire was everywhere.”

Though the entire family was able to make it out safely, Leroy could not get back inside to save Zippy.

“We made it out just in time. It went ‘poom’ and when I turn around, I’m making them run, and I go to get the dog,’ he said. “I just get all this black smoke and ‘poom’ – all in my mouth, and all in my face. I was like ‘ok, I gotta turn around. It’s too hot and I gotta get out of her.'”

Leroy went on to explain that Zippy’s small body could not get past the flames.

“The floor in the living room was all on fire so there was nowhere for him to run out,” he said. “Even if the smoke was this high. He was a short little dog. There was nowhere for him to go.”

The Butler family had adopted Zippy from the Humane Society of Manatee County, and they could not be more proud of him. After the fire was put out, Zippy was sadly found hiding under a bed, having died of smoke inhalation.

“He was a good dog,” Leroy said. “He did his job, we rescued him, and I guess he returned the favor.”