An elderly couple escaped from their burning southeast Houston home Monday morning.

Houston firefighters battled the blaze at a home in the 8100 block of Panay near Westover about 5:30 a.m.

The couple said their gas had been turned off about a week ago, so they were using space heaters to keep warm.

Arson investigator said they believe the space heaters caused the fire.

"I talked to them before they plugged up the heater and said, 'Make sure there's nothing around it,'" said the couple's granddaughter, Lanike Brown.

"I tried to fight it," homeowner Robert Minex said. "I thought I had it for a minute there."

The couple ran out of the home and they were not hurt, but their pregnant Chihuahua got scared and hid in back room and died in the fire.

The house was destroyed. The family sifted through the rubble to save whatever they could.

"I just thank God everyone is OK," Brown said. "I'm just grateful right now."

The couple said they paid their gas bill, but it had not been turned back on.