Three young boys from New Jersey were riding their bikes through a forest when they became lost and went missing for several hours.
The entire neighborhood, including departments from two counties, joined forces to find the missing boys, but it was a police K-9 that emerged as the hero.
Shiloh, a Gloucester County Sheriff’s Department Bloodhound, was able to track the boys’ scents and lead police to them.
Officers used the boys’ bed sheets to help Shiloh know what they smelled like so Shiloh could track their scent.
They arrived at a creek after walking for a while. Shiloh discovered the boys’ shoes along the way and led police for a mile through the creek until they found the boys.
Fortunately, none of them were hurt. They told police that while they were lost, they were searching YouTube for videos on how to survive in the wilderness.
It’s safe to say that the boys will not be venturing out again anytime soon!
Shiloh was hailed a hero and given a liverwurst treat as a reward.
Since 2013, the Gloucester County Sheriff’s Department has trained bloodhounds to search for children and older adults suffering from Alzheimer’s or dementia who frequently wander off.
The dogs are given an item of clothing or something else that has the scent of the missing person on it, and the dog is then trained to track that specific scent in order to find them.
More on the story can be found in the video below: