Elderly Dog Helped Save Toddler Lost In The Wilderness And Our Hearts Are Exploding

An elderly, deaf dog helped save his 3-year-old owner

Get ready for your heart to explode with goodness. A 17-year-old dog, who is both deaf and partially blind, stayed by his young owner’s side when she got lost in the wilderness. He also helped lead her to safety which proves, once again, that dogs > everything else.

Three-year-old Aurora went missing in Queensland’s brushland last Friday. For more than 15 hours she was lost in the wilderness, while her family, 100 State Emergency Service volunteers, and police officers frantically searched for her, according to ABC. Meanwhile, Aurora’s dog Max stayed by the her side the entire time. The two slept together in the bushes three kilometres away from their family’s property. When morning came, Max helped Leisa Bennett, the little girl’s grandmother, find their location. I told you that your heart would completely burst open.

“When I heard her yell ‘Grammy’ I knew it was her,” Bennett told ABC. “I shot up the mountain and when I got to the top, the dog came to me and led me straight to her…It could have gone any of 100 ways, but she’s here, she’s alive, she’s well and it’s a great outcome for our family.”

Bennet added that the area her granddaughter got lost in was quite rugged and treacherous, so it really was incredible that her elderly pet stuck by her side the whole time. Thankfully, Aurora only came away with a few scratches and bruises from the wilderness. Her pup was celebrated for his loyalty, tenacity, and all around incredible doggie heroism.

He was named an honorary police dog and became an instant internet sensation. The overall theme was that dogs are pretty much the best and Max is a very, very good boy.

Here’s hoping Max got the biggest bone possible when he returned home. Literally no one deserves that bone more than him.