FOUR dogs and two chickens died in a suspected arson blaze which tore through a stable block.

Firefighters spent hours battling the flames and managed to rescue several other animals kept at Haddings Head Cottages, Higham, at around 10.15pm on Sunday.

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Landowners John and Mary Jackson use the field adjacent to a path that leads to the cottages to keep animals including a number dogs, cats, goats and chickens.

But as they live around two miles away in Sabden the residents in the cottages were the first to raise the alarm when they saw flames leaping into the sky.

One resident said: “We saw the fire and called the fire service, it looked really bad, you couldn’t see beyond the flames and the smoke, it was scary.

“Everybody was really worried for the animals, nobody likes to see animals getting hurt and it was horrible.

“You could hear one of the dogs howling and crying in the fire, it was so upsetting.”

Andrew Higginbottom, who lives in one of the cottages with his wife and four children, said: “It looked like the fire started in one of the stables and then spread from there.

“They keep a lot of animals on the site so everybody was concerned for them, the horses stay in the fields but there are usually dogs and cats and a few others in that area.

“There was a lot of flames. The fire service were here until around 3am and the police were here too investigating how it started.

“We’ve got CCTV on the front of the house and you can see the fire starting, but you don’t see anyone close by.”

According to friend Russell Starkie the Jackson’s have owned the land for around 12 years.

Mr Starkie said: “John and Mary are devastated by what has happened, they loved their dogs, it is heartbreaking for them.

“There are no electrics on the site so I think it has to be arson.

“Mary brought the land with some inheritance money and they have used it for their animals.”

The landowners come everyday to check on the animals but there has been a dispute over land access, according to neighbours.

Inspector Simon Holderness is urging anyone with information about the fire to contact him.

He said: “Investigations are now ongoing to establish whether it is suspicious or not.

“Anyone with information should call police on 101.”