Teen jumps off school bus to save dog from Phoenix house fire

PHOENIX (KSAZ) - Zack the pit bull is more than just a dog.

"I sleep with him, he's my sister's, but I grew up with him... he's family," Mike Assi said.

When Zack's life was in danger, 14-year-old Mike Assi never hesitated to risk his own to save his best friend.

"I wasn't going to leave him," he said.

Neighbors captured video of fire ripping through the family's home. It was just after 7 a.m. right after Mike boarded the school bus. Zack was stuck inside, so Mike did the only thing he knew to do.

"We see my house is on fire and the bus driver stopped and I run out of the bus and I go open the front door," Mike said. "I start yelling for my dog's name because I knew he was in there. He wouldn't come out the front door. There was a lot of pitch-black smoke."

When he couldn't see into the house, Mike says he ran to the back door.

"I go through the backyard, I open the back door and I start yelling for him," he said. "He comes out through the backyard. He sat in the backyard... he wouldn't move. We were too close to the house. I had to pick him up to bring out through the front yard."

Mike's mom was at work an hour away and says she isn't surprised by her son's heroism.

"He grew up with the dog... he spent a lot of time with his sister in her house, that's why he love him to death... he not going to leave him," Hana Bress said.

Both the teen and pup were checked out by emergency crews and given a full bill of health.

A GoFundMe page has been setup to help the family. You can donate by clicking here.