Rancher’s dog rescues toddler who wandered 7 miles and spent night alone in Arizona desert

A 2-year-old child who got lost in the Arizona desert overnight is safe after a rancher’s dog helped lead him to civilization. 

The toddler was reported missing just before 5:00 p.m. Monday, the Yavapai County Sheriff’s Office said on social media. A missing person poster shared by the sheriff’s office identified the toddler as Boden Allen, and said he was last seen wearing a tank top and pajama pants. 

Boden had wandered off from his home in Seligman, Arizona, a remote town with a population of less than 1,000 people, the sheriff’s office said. 

A wide search was immediately begun, including 40 search and rescue team members, several deputies from the Yavapai and Coconino County Sheriff’s Offices, and members of the Arizona Department of Public Safety. The search continued overnight. A Department of Public Safety ranger rescue helicopter crew said they spotted two mountain lions in the area, the sheriff’s office said. Temperatures in the county ranged between the high 40s and low 50s overnight, weather history site timeanddate.com said. 

Searchers didn’t find anything overnight, but on Tuesday morning, an area rancher spotted something surprising at the end of his driveway. 

“I’d heard about the missing child before I was going to town, and when I was driving out the driveway I noticed my dog was sitting down by the entrance,” said the rancher in an interview with the sheriff’s office. CBS affiliate KPHO identified him as Scotty Dunton. “I look up, and there’s a little kid standing there with my dog.” 

Dunton said his home is about seven miles from the toddler’s house, separated by rough terrain including “three big mountain ranges” and “big valleys.” He speculated that Boden walked down a clear-cut path under a power line, but still “can’t believe the kid made it that far.” The sheriff’s office confirmed the distance between Boden and Dunton’s homes. 

Dunton said he brought Boden inside, and gave him something to eat and drink. He asked the toddler if he had walked all night. The boy said he had slept under a tree. Dunton believes the tree is in his horse pasture. Dunton then said he asked Boden if his dog, an Anatolian Pyrenees named Buford, found him. The boy said yes, Dunton said. 

Buford is a “guardian dog” who patrols within a half mile of the house at night and keeps coyotes away from the property, Dunton said. He told the sheriff’s office that he believes Buford came upon the toddler and protected him while bringing him to safety. 

“It’s what he does. He loves kids, so I can imagine he wouldn’t leave him when he found him,” Dunton said. “It was a relief that he was alive. I was ecstatic that he was OK and that my dog found him.” 

Dunton called police and informed them the child was on his property. Deputies confirmed it was the missing boy. The sheriff’s office did not say if the boy was taken for medical care after he was found.

Dunton told AZFamily that Buford will continue his guarding duties, but not without a reward. 

“Oh, he’s getting steak dinner tonight, my wife already said,” Dunton said. “He did a great job.”