Assign one person, one dog, one meeting point
A fire plan fails dogs when everyone assumes someone else grabbed the leash. Name one adult whose only job, after waking the household, is to collect the dog, and name a backup for nights when that person is away. Agree on a single outdoor meeting point across the street or at a neighbour's front garden, far enough from the house that nobody drifts back toward the door. Note where your dog sleeps and where he hides when alarms, storms or visitors frighten him, because a dog who wedges himself under a bed or behind a boiler will not come when called through smoke and noise. Keep that hiding-place list on the fridge where the assigned person can check it in seconds rather than searching from memory.
Stage the gear where you will actually need it
Keep a sturdy leash and a slip lead hanging by the main exit and a second set by the bedroom door, since the route you take at night may not pass the usual hallway hook. A slip lead matters because a panicked dog may have backed out of his collar or be sleeping without one, and you may have no time to buckle anything. Store a small torch with the leashes, keep shoes by the bed in winter, and place a labelled note by the front door for firefighters stating how many dogs are inside and where they usually sleep. Replace window stickers that list pets when numbers change, and keep carriers for very small dogs near their sleeping area rather than in a locked garage you cannot reach.
Practise the route until it is boring
Walk the plan on a quiet evening, leash in hand, from bedroom to meeting point, and reward your dog for settling beside you outside. Practise again with everyone in different rooms, with doors closed, and once after dark, so the route works from the bathroom and the spare room as well as the main bedroom. Teach a recall cue and a hand target that you use only for these drills and for real emergencies, paired with an especially good treat, so the cue stays valuable. If your dog will not leave a hiding place during a drill, do not drag him out and poison the exercise. Instead, note the hiding place for firefighters, practise coaxing him out with the special cue on ordinary days, and plan your own escape first every time.
If he gets out or is left behind
Get people out first, always, and never re-enter a burning or smoke-filled house for a dog, however certain you are of where he is. From outside, give firefighters his name, size, colour, hiding places and last known room, and keep someone at the meeting point in case he finds his own way out and looks for you. A dog who escapes the house often runs from the noise and sirens, so search the immediate gardens, sheds and parked cars once it is safe, calling calmly rather than shouting. If searches come up empty, KinsLe's Lost Pet Alert System puts his photo and details on the map at no cost, since the alert sits in every profile, and whoever finds him can reach you by direct message while you stay with the emergency crews.