( CNN ) Fans of a heroic dog who fought in vain to save her owner 's life in an Ohio house fire have donated more than $ 28,000 toward the $ 25,000 goal for the care of the 9-year-old boxer named Carmen . The injured dog , owned by Ben Ledford of Goshen Township , is doing much better in an animal hospital recovering from smoke inhalation , said Phil Ledford , the victim 's brother , on the Crowdrise website . `` Our family continues to be amazed at the amount of donations , support , thoughts and prayers being said for our family and Carmen . We are still trying to find the right words to truly express our appreciation , '' Ledford said in a Wednesday note . `` Carmen is still doing well , '' said Ledford . The canine is now in physical therapy . `` She 's working on being able to stand up on her own again , among other things . Because she 's fully awake and alert , our visits are short . We want her to save her energy for PT . `` It 's exciting to see her recognize us , try to greet us and give us expressions that show her personality shining through once again , '' he said . On Thursday , Carmen was `` a little more awake '' and her `` appetite continues to improve as you can see she is cleaning her bowl . '' Many dog lovers posted messages with their donations . `` We have a boxer baby , and this act of devotion is not surprising , '' Don and Lukasz Mallory wrote Friday on the crowdfunding site . `` Prayers to the family for their loss and to Carmen for a fast recovery . If a dog can be this devoted to a human being , how much more should we be to each other . '' Carmen dramatically tried to save her owner 's life in the February 5 fire . Deadly flames licked all around her , but Carmen refused to leave her owner in a suburban Cincinnati basement . First responders to the fire found Carmen on top of Ledford , trying to shelter his face from the heat , smoke and flame , according to CNN affiliate WCPO . Ledford , 33 , was taken to a hospital where he died . Carmen ended up at Cincinnati 's Care Center , a critical care veterinary hospital . Carmen was initially battling severe lung damage , Dr. Daniel Carey , a vet at the hospital , told WCPO . The canine was taken off a ventilator on Tuesday and began breathing on her own , according to the Facebook page of the animal hospital Care Center Vets in Cincinnati . She was to come off fluids and IV medications Friday . Dr. Marlo Anderson , another vet at the hospital who is caring for the dog , told WCPO she was not at all surprised that Carmen tried to save her owner . `` A lot of dogs instinctively know when there 's a crisis going on and so a lot of them do go to try to protect their owners , so she very well may have been trying to protect him , '' she said . CNN 's Doug Criss contributed to this report .
More than $ 500 is donated for Carmen , a 9-year - old girl . Dog unsuccessfully tried to save her life in a recent nightclub fight . ` ` Our family continues to be amazed at the amount of donations , '' victim 's brother says .