Ranch dog leads lost Arizona toddler to safety after desert night

A 2-year-old Arizona boy is safe after spending a night alone in desert wilderness near Seligman — thanks in part to a ranch dog who led him to safety.

The Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office says that the child, Boden Allen, went missing from his family’s rural home around 5 p.m. Monday wearing only a tank top and pajama pants.

When night approached, the sheriff’s office organized a search effort with over 40 rescuers, state Department of Public Safety rangers, 4×4 trucks, and helicopters fitted with thermal cameras. During the search mission, a helicopter caught sight of two mountain lions roaming the ground, creating anxiety for the safety of the boy.

Sixteen hours after Boden disappeared, rancher Scottie Dunton was preparing to head into town when he spotted an unexpected sight — his dog Buford walking alongside a boy near the fence line of his property, nearly 7 miles from where Boden had last been seen.

“I got in my truck to go to town and I see Buford walking down the side of the fence with a little blond kid with him,” Dunton told NBC affiliate KPNX of Phoenix. “I had heard about the missing child this morning, so I knew it was him.”

Despite trekking through canyons, ridges, and rough desert terrain known for wildlife including bears, coyotes, and mountain lions, the toddler was found with only minor scratches.

Dunton’s told 12NEWS that his dog, an Anatolian Pyrenees, had apparently found the boy and stayed by his side, even escorting him across the last mile to the ranch house.

The boy told Dunton he had laid under a tree during the cold desert night before continuing on foot at dawn. Dunton described the terrain as “rough for adults, let alone a 2-year-old.”

“He loves kids, and I imagine he wouldn’t leave him once he’d found him,” Dunton told NBC News, who normally patrols the ranch and wards off predators.

According to Dunton, once reunited with his parents, Boden quickly returned to his playful self after drinking some water. Dunton, still marveling at the child’s endurance, summed it up simply: “There was a thousand ways for that to go really, really bad — and one good way. And luckily, it turned out to be the good way.”