A 4-year-old boy who was missing while searching for his dog Wednesday was found after a search by area officers, including Lt. Doug Woods, of the Douglas County Sheriff's Office.

A 4-year-old boy went looking for his dog Wednesday morning.

A few hours later, more than two dozen law enforcement officers went looking for the boy.

They found him, sitting contentedly on a log that had fallen over a creek northeast of Lawrence. The dog had already returned home.

Other than a few scratches and being a little cold, the boy was not injured, Douglas County Sheriff Ken McGovern said.

“He was just glad to be home, get something to eat and get in the bath,” McGovern said.

The boy’s name wasn’t released, and his family didn’t want to talk to the media.

The boy’s parents told officers that their son had wandered off about 9:30 a.m. searching for his dog. They reported him missing shortly before 11 a.m., and officers from Douglas, Jefferson and Leavenworth counties, the Lawrence Police Department and the Kansas Highway Patrol began searching an area around the block of 1800 East 1700 Road. The Highway Patrol also called in its helicopter.

There are a lot of dangers for a little boy out in the woods alone, neighbor Robbie Criss said. He said he became very concerned when officers asked him if he’d seen the boy.

“I went out and told them to please look in that woods because there’s this creek down there and it’s pretty high with water,” Criss said. “I’m just glad it’s over. I’m just glad he’s safe.”

A few minutes after noon the helicopter spotted the boy and guided officers to him. He was a little more than a quarter of a mile from his home.

“He was just kind of sitting there taking it easy, and one of the Lawrence PD officers went down in the water and picked him up off the log and then handed him back to me,” Douglas County Sheriff’s Lt. Doug Woods said. “I was glad we found him down there and that he was OK.”

Officers also were relieved that the search didn’t stretch through the day and into the night.

“Fortunately it was warm enough today where he hadn’t really gotten cold yet,” McGovern said. “We’re just glad he’s home and back in the house.”