Rosie the Dog Rescues 3-Year-Old Dinosaur Hunter

Friday, May 18, 2001 - UK

"Trilobites and dinosaurs, who were each around for more than a hundred million years, might be amused at a species here only a thousandth as long deciding to appoint itself the guardian of life on Earth. That species is itself the danger."

Carl Sagan, Billions and Billions, 1998

But lucky for us, we have Border Collies to fix things.

SUTHERLAND, SCOTLAND — When three-year-old Cameron Munro of north west Scotland wandered off in search of dinosaurs, his family was understandably panicked.  Dinosaurs are pretty big.

Cameron, who was missing overnight, became the focus of an intense, regional search conducted by the authorities.  Rescue parties and helicopters scoured the countryside around Sutherland, all to no avail.

"Cameron had seen the men searching for him and heard the helicopters overhead, but he is frightened of helicopters and did not know the men.  So he curled up under a fallen tree in the forest and made himself a wee nest," later said Cameron's mother.

In all, there were some 300 people searching for the boy, but in the end, all it took was one dog, Rosie the Border Collie.

Rosie sniffed herself to within yards of the toddler, who then, upon finally seeing a trustworthy face, rushed out to meet the 10-year-old dog.

Cameron's mother explains, "His granddad is a shepherd so Cameron knows collies from home and when he saw Rosie he recognised her as a friendly face in an unfamiliar situation."

Cameron (left) and life-saver Rosie
Photo: The Scotsman

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