Missing toddler found 3 miles from Michigan home, asleep and using her dog “as a pillow”

An unusual end came to a massive search for a 2-year-old girl in Michigan, who had gone missing from her family’s home earlier in the evening. The toddler was eventually found in a wooded area about three miles from the home, asleep and using one of the family dogs “as a pillow,” Michigan State Police said.

State troopers with the Iron Mountain Post were called at around 8 p.m. Wednesday to the child’s home in Faithorn, a township in Michigan’s Upper Peninsula just over the Wisconsin border, where they learned that the girl had wandered away from the residence with two family dogs. Multiple police officers, K-9 dogs, search and rescue teams and local citizens joined an “extensive search effort” to find the toddler, which also involved state police drones and authorities in surrounding Wisconsin counties.

The search continued for several hours before a local citizen riding an ATV located the child close to midnight.

“The girl was asleep, using her smaller dog as a pillow while the larger one stayed nearby. She was checked by medical staff and appeared to be in good health,” said Lt. Mark Giannunzio, of the Michigan State Police, in a statement to CBS News.

“Cooperation and coordination by various government and volunteer agencies in conjunction with community efforts contributed to the successful outcome,” the statement continued. “The Michigan State Police, Iron Mountain Post, would like to thank everyone involved with locating this young girl.”

Noting that negative comments about the toddler’s disappearance have emerged online in recent days, Giannunzio said the child’s mother, who spoke about the incident in interviews with CNN and a handful of local news outlets over the weekend, has since requested privacy and declined further contact with media.