Family Dog Helps Searchers Find Minnesota Toddler in Cornfield

The toddler was playing with siblings outside his home in Richmond last week when he wandered away

RICHMOND, Minn. — A family dog helped searchers find a 2-year-old boy who was lost on a chilly night in a central Minnesota cornfield.

This is infrared video by the Minnesota State Patrol.

The toddler was playing with siblings outside his home in Richmond last week when he wandered away.

Family members called authorities after they failed to locate him as it grew dark.

State Patrol troopers in a helicopter used a heat-seeking device to pick up the heat from the dog and the boy.

The dog hadn’t left the child’s side.

Authorities say the dog was in protection mode and played a major role in finding the boy about three hours after he disappeared.