A missing toddler has been found safe and well in the Australian bush after being guarded from harm by his family's faithful pet dog for 14 hours.
Dasher the German Shepherd was found by two-year-old Dante Berry's side when rescuers tracked them down in woodland more than four kilometers from his mother's home in Mildura, New South Wales.
Dante's mother Bianca Chapman raised the alarm after the pair disappeared from her front garden on Tuesday evening.
More than 100 police, firefighters and volunteers searched the bush for the missing pair, following their foot and paw prints as they wandered through the sandy scrub land, according to the Herald Sun.
A discarded nappy found next to a dirt track around two kilometers from the family's home was the breakthrough rescuers needed to find the pair.
They were eventually discovered when two police officers heard a loud cry in knee-high scrub several meters from the track, according to the Herald.
The youngster is thought to have cried out after treading on some prickles. He was described as being 'stunned' and dehydrated when they found him.
The youngster, who had prickles in his bare feet after walking through the undergrowth, was finally reunited with his mother at 10am on Wednesday - 14 hours after he was reported missing.
Senior Constable Carol Rigby, who was one of two officers who found the pair, said they had first seen Dasher appearing in the bushes.
'(Dante) was very grubby. He had very grubby feet and legs and hands. He was more stunned and amazed than anything,' she told the Herald.
Sen Con Rigby said the child was in 'pretty good nick' following his ordeal - which had included being out in a thunderstorm.
The toddler was taken home by his family before going to hospital where he was treated for dehydration and mild hypothermia.
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