Girl Lost In Cornfield; Faithful Dog Didn’t Leave Her Side

QULIN, MO — If you’ve ever had doubts about the faithfulness of a dog, a story from Qulin, Missouri, may erase them. A 3-year-old girl wandered away from her home last week, and was found about 12 hours later in a cornfield. Remy Elliott’s pet Yorkshire terrier, Fat Heath, was by her side.

Remy’s mother, Timber Merritt, said she called for her daughter after she disappeared around 8 p.m. Thursday. When the girl didn’t answer back, she realized she needed help. The search party swelled from about five people to about 100 volunteers before Remy and Fat Heath were found.

Two helicopters joined the search from the air.

“This is what #community looks like,” the Missouri State Highway Patrol tweeted after the Remy and Fat Heath were found. “Law enforcement, 1st Responders and community volunteers coming together to find a missing child. Her dog stayed by her side all night. #StrongerTogether.”

The search for Remy was suspended overnight after the searchers’ flashlight batteries were drained, then resumed Friday morning, television station KFVS reported.

The rows of corn act as sound barriers, volunteer Makayla Hardcastle told the television station.

“The corn feels like razor blades cutting you, especially for a child,” she said. “And you don’t hear well in the corn either, so when somebody is yelling your name you can hear them but you don’t know where it is coming from.”

Merritt’s brother, Quinlin, found the toddler about half a mile from the house.

“She was definitely exhausted, hot, really sweaty and it took a while to drink anything,” Merritt told KFVS. “She said she wasn’t scared because Fat Heath was there. If he wasn’t I think she would’ve been terrified.”

Remy was checked out at a Poplar Bluff, Missouri, hospital and released. Her only injuries were mosquito bites.

Photo via Shutterstock / Allexxandar