A Custer, South Dakota toddler and his loyal sidekick, a pet pit bull, embarked on a backyard adventure Monday but caused a panic when they wandered too far into the hills and prompted an all-out search by authorities.
After the boy, 3, went missing from his home on Little Italy Road in Custer, his mother made a panicked phone call to police.
The boy was missing for nearly an hour before police found him unharmed in the woods and protected by his large brown pit bull.
Custer County Sheriff Rick Wheeler said after an intense search they came upon the boy, but Wheeler couldn’t go near him because the dog would not allow it. The dog did not become overly aggressive, but Wheeler knew better than to go any closer.
“He was showing me that this was not my area,” said Wheeler. “I know that look.”
Wheeler had the boy’s father come and take the dog home before safety personnel could approach the boy.
The boy, whose parents do not want to be identified, was missing for 55 minutes and wandered approximately a quarter-mile from his home. His mother told police she turned around to do something and in a very short time, the boy had disappeared.
Wheeler said it wasn’t clear if the dog was following the boy or the boy following the dog. “I think it was a joint venture,” Wheeler said with a chuckle.
Wheeler said they tracked the boy by following footprints made by his boots in the snow. But with the snow being sparse, they sometimes would lose him, but they never slowed down.
“We took off on a dead run until we found him,” said Wheeler. Wheeler and the boy’s parents along with about 12 other personnel were searching for the child.
Searchers found the boy wearing only light clothing and a coat amid temperatures in the 30s. Wheeler said there were no obvious injuries, but the boy was taken to the hospital as a precaution.
His parents were visibly relieved and overjoyed to find their boy, said Wheeler. The boy was mostly curious and asking excited questions about all the people and emergency vehicles that greeted him at the conclusion of his journey.
~ Courtesy of Rapid City Journal
Tags: boy lost in woods, dog protector, dog protects boy, dog takes care of boy, missing toddler
