Two little girls who wandered into a dark, dark wood are home safely thanks to an army of search and rescue volunteers… and one very good boy.
Videos by InspireMore
Abigail and Cecelia Bourg were playing in their Folsom, Louisiana backyard with their golden retriever, Artemis, when they went a little farther from home than they intended. Mom Mary Bourg grew frantic as she searched their 6 acre property but could not locate her 4 and 7-year-old daughters.
“I just start like running around the whole property – 6 acres – and that’s when I called [my husband] and said, ‘They’re gone,'” Mary recalled.
The children’s parents grew more frantic as night fell and temperatures plummeted, but their community really stepped up to help. Thankfully, about 4 hours after they went missing, the girls were found about a mile from home deep in the woods.
“We had volunteer search crews, ATVs, drones, helicopters, dogs, cars, and even a 25-person horse crew was prepared to search,” Mary wrote on Facebook. “They were found deep in the heavy woods and it was DARK.”
Thankfully, the girls weren’t alone in the woods. They had Artemis.
When the girls got tired of walking, they hung onto his collar for support. When they sat down to rest, Artemis let them lie down on top of him to stay warm. As rescuers got closer to them, the dog’s barks lead them straight to the frightened children.
The loyal dog wasn’t about to turn his girls over to just any humans, either. Rescuers say he circled around Abigail and Cecelia and growled at anyone who tried to get too close. He only relaxed when their parents showed up for a tearful reunion!
Mary expressed her gratitude on Facebook to all of the people who helped find her daughters, but she had special thanks for the family dog.
“Also, so grateful for our hero Artemis, our golden retriever,” she wrote. “The helicopter first spotted some movement and sent a search crew in their direction. And then Artemis heard people coming and started barking making it much easier to find them. He even growled at the police at first because he was protecting our babies.”
Later, the girls said they had actually been following Artemis when they ran into the woods, but his family has forgiven him for leading the girls astray.
“He’s got a free pass for a while,” dad Justin Bourg said. “I won’t be fussing at him for chewing up blankets and shoes.”
Artemis deserves all of the treats for taking care of his family! We hate to think of those girls alone in the woods without their four-legged guardian.
Share this story to give Artemis some virtual pats on the head.
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