Caney barn fire kills about 35 animals

The fire marshals are investigating how a barn in Caney caught fire overnight, killing about 35 animals inside including exotic goats.

The owners value the loss at more than $40,000, losing not only their animals but also their livelihood.

About 30 goats and six Pyrenees puppies lost their lives in an early morning barn fire Friday.

"The barn was completely involved in fire, most of the roof had already fallen in, it had been burning for awhile before we got there," Caney Fire Chief Michael Harkey said.

Some of those goats were called Savanna goats, a rare breed native to South Africa.

"It's heartbreaking to see those animals die that way," Harkey said.

Being that temperatures were below freezing all night, the heat lamps were warming the barn.

"We've seen this type of fire before, it's always in the winter and usually caused by heating," Harkey said.

Caney Fire Chief Michael Harkey said it may have been an electrical fire.

But the owners said they think the fire may be suspicious, being that they've received threats in the past. They didn't feel comfortable talking on camera or saying what those threats were.

They called in the fire marshal to investigate further, but he said with so much damage, a cause will be hard to determine.

"You're gonna have these fires in the middle of the night because of the time it takes to heat that material up to start it burning," Harkey said.

The owners said some of the goats were worth about $2,500 a piece and the puppies about $200.