WILTON — A family returned from the son’s baseball practice Wednesday to find a fire had started inside their U.S. Route 2 home, killing their two dogs and cat, Wilton fire Chief Sonny Dunham said.

Walter and Caryn Leighton and their son Jordan Feero, 14, reached the front door, noticed smoke and called 911 about 5 p.m. When firefighters arrived shortly thereafter, the fire had already been extinguished by a lack of oxygen because the windows and doors in the one-story ranch-style home had been closed, Dunham said. He said the fire gutted the living room.

Intense heat from the fire also killed the family’s pets and caused damage to other sections of the 483 U.S. Route 2 home, which was insured, Dunham said.

He didn’t know what caused the fire and said a state fire marshal’s office investigator was scheduled to arrive this morning.