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The residents weren't home when the blaze broke out in the kitchen at the back of the Voorhis Avenue home and quickly spread shortly after 7 p.m., New Milford Police Chief Brian Clancy said.
Borough firefighters were immediately joined by their colleagues from Oradell and River Edge, with New Milford Fire Chief Gerry Smithson operating as the scene commander, the chief said.
They battled cluttered conditions along with the flames, he said.
Borough Fire Marshall Alan Silverman deemed the cause of the two-alarm fire accidental, although the specific cause had yet to be determined.
The fire was declared under control around 8 p.m.
"Overhaul was going to take awhile because of cluttered conditions in the house," said Clancy, the police chief.
New Milford firefighters removed the remains of the dogs from the home and handed them over to Bergen County Animal Control, he said.
Mutual aid at the fire or in coverage included firefighters from Closter, Dumont, Emerson, Hackensack, Haworth and Teaneck, responders at the scene said.
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