Yorktown Family Believes Woman Has Their Missing Hero Dog

It's been more than a week since a devastating house fire in Yorktown destroyed a family's home and killed three of their dogs. But their fourth dog Nero – a 10-year-old Newfoundland who ran away after waking up Marie Eliseo and her mother Maria – is still missing. 

"Without [Nero], they would have been dead," Giulio Eliseo told Patch. 

Now, the family believes an older woman in her 60s, who has not been paying attention to the news, has their dog. 

"She has Nero and two other dogs who will be adopted," Eliseo said based on what two psychics, who wish to remain anonymous, have told him. 

He urges the community to keep an eye out on their neighbors and report if they see his hero dog Nero. Eliseo believes he is somewhere near the Jefferson Valley firehouse. 

The Eliseo family has not lost hope that they will be reunited with him. 

Nero is a 150-pound St. Bernard-sized black Newfoundland who has a white chest and gray hair around his mouth. He has been described as a "gentle-giant."

"He is the last thing we have of our house," said Bernadette Eliseo, the middle child who is 22 years old. "We've always considered him our brother."

The family's three other dogs – Bandit, 1-year-old Husky; Roxie, an 8-year-old English bulldog; and Buddy, a 4-year-old Chihuahua-Dachshund mix – all perished in the fire. They died of smoke inhalation and their bodies were untouched by the fire, the family said. 

That late morning fire last Sunday also threatened to kill Giulio Eliseo's wife and oldest daughter who had been sleeping. He, his younger daughter Bernadette and son Giulio Jr. were not home at the time.

Marie Eliseo, 26, who had been sleeping on the coach after coming home late from babysitting, said she woke up because her 150-pound dog Nero was standing over her on the couch and was barking "the scariest, howling cry" she had ever heard. 

She said she saw smoke in the kitchen and on the deck. When she went looking for the fire extinguisher, but couldn't find it. By the time she came back to the room, she saw flames and thick smoke in the kitchen. Then, all the glass on the windows exploded. 

She knew she had to get out of the house through the garage. She ran around the house to her mother Maria's second floor window. Eliseo had had a hip replacement surgery three weeks ago and wasn't able to get out of the house. 

That's when two men – Brian Avery and Robert Cole – helped save her mother from the burning home and brought her down safely with an extension ladder. 

Since the Eliseo family lost everything in the fire, they've been staying with relatives in Somers and spent Thanksgiving with family. 

They are praying they would soon be reunited with their dog Nero. Since his disappearance, several sightings have been reported, including one in Mohegan Lake and another one in Cortlandt. 

"He never gave up on us," Bernadette Eliseo told Patch. "He woke up my sister. How could we give up on him?"

Anyone who sees Nero can call Giulio Eliseo at 914-261-5997.

A Facebook page has been set up to collect donations for the family. A GoFundMe and GiveForward accounts have been set up here and here. 

___

For further reading:

• Neighbor Who Saved Yorktown Woman: 'It Was Just a Miracle'

• Yorktown's Eliseo Family, Displaced by Fire, Needs Your Help

• Fire Reduces Yorktown Home to Rubble [Photos]

• Report: Yorktown Fire Destroys Home, Neighbors Rescue Woman