Cory and Sarah Allen, the parents of a 2-year-old boy who vanished from his rural Arizona home and walked miles through the wilderness before being saved by a rancher's dog, say their son's rescue is nothing short of a "miracle."
The Allen child went missing from his Seligman home around 5 p.m. Monday and was found safe roughly 16 hours later—seven miles away—thanks to a ranch dog named Buford.
While his father worked on the roof and his mother cared for their infant, the toddler disappeared, prompting a large-scale search by the Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office and more than 40 rescuers, including a DPS helicopter that spotted two mountain lions nearby.
Rancher Scotty Dunton said it was his dog, an Anatolian Pyrenees, who led him to the boy, who was sleeping under a tree with just a few scratches on his arm.
Cory Allen said:
"I feel like God sent that dog to rescue my son."
Sarah Allen agreed:
"[It's] a miracle. It's unreal and it's unbelievable."
You can watch a news report about his safe return below.
- YouTubewww.youtube.com
Many are thrilled that the child is now back in the arms of his parents.
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Scotty Dunton, Buford's owner, told news outlets several days ago that he spotted his dog hanging out with the little boy. Dunton believes the toddler may have followed a power line all the way to his property, where he was eventually found.
When he asked the boy if he walked all night, the boy responded "no," but kept repeating "tree, tree."
"So I said, 'you laid down under a tree? And he said, 'yeah.' And I said, did my dog find you? And he said, 'yeah.'"
Despite his ordeal, he had just a few scratches and was otherwise safe and unharmed.
So glad he made it home safe!
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