FIRE-RAISERS have left an entire family shattered after an arson attack which killed five of their much-loved pets.

The five chinchillas, Katie, Dexter, Holly and 'the two boys,' died when the shed that was their summer home was destroyed by fire.

The Smith family, of Bullamoor Close, Northallerton, used to breed the animals for a hobby, giving the babies, once weaned, away to friends.

However, they stopped breeding two years ago and kept the five remaining ones as their pets.

During the winter months the animals stayed in the house, where they were frequently allowed to roam free, and in the summer were transferred to the shed at the bottom of the garden where they had their own run.

Father-of-four Andrew Smith, 46, said: "All the children used to play with them. They were like part of the family."

The arson attack came in the early hours of Saturday morning when Andrew's wife, Susan, woke him to say that neighbours had called to tell them that the fire service was on the way.

Andrew, a former driver who no longer works because of ill-health, said: "I grabbed my swimming trunks as they were the closest thing to hand and I dashed outside.

"One shed was already burnt out and the other was already well ablaze. That was where the chinchillas were and we couldn't do anything to save them."

He added: "The fire brigade was magnificent. They were here very quickly and soon managed to put out the flames - but there was nothing that could be done for our pets and they were burnt to death."

He said the four children, Emma, 13, Richard, 15, Peter, 16, and Matthew, 18, had been left distraught by the incident.

He added: "We just don't know why anybody would want to do a thing like this."

A fire service spokesman confirmed the cause of the blaze was suspicious. "We are treating the cause as deliberate and we are investigating."