An exotic petting zoo in Seminole told News 9 on Friday that it released all of its animals amid a thick, smoky fire earlier in the day.

Nomad’s Animal Encounter said it had a huge outpouring of support online in the moments following the fire, from veterinarians offering their services, to people who were willing to foster, and others who had crates and trailers that stopped by to help.

“Me and my wife go to town to buy feed and our employees are here taking care of the animals. We're getting the animal groceries and they call us and they said, ‘hey, the whole place is on fire. You need to get here quick.’ So, we called the fire departments,” said co-owner Matthew Crabtree.

Strother Fire Department responded to the call, which led them to the property next door just before noon on Frid

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