LA BROQUERIE, Man. — The mother of a four-year-old girl who went missing near her home in the Rural Municipality of La Broquerie says she is grateful to have her child back alive and safe.

Elvira Harthi tells CTV Winnipeg her daughter Renia is an adventurous four-year-old who loves her dog, Max.

Recently the little girl slipped out of the house unnoticed by the babysitter and followed the dog into the woods behind her home.

A quick search failed to find any hint of the girl, who managed to slip through two barbed wire fences on her journey.

Steinbach RCMP canine unit member Const. Garfield Henderson and his dog, Enzo, were called in and found the little girl one kilometre from her home.

Renia was a little wet and scared, but otherwise OK.

“I cast my dog into that area, and quickly located a track,” says Henderson. “And within 15 minutes, we located the girl crying in the middle of the bush.

“Enzo came right up to her, and she gave him a big pet on the head. Then she jumped into my arms, locked onto my neck, and we walked out of the bush.”

The girl was examined by paramedics as a precaution.

She was missing for about 45 minutes but her mother describes the experience as “a nightmare. It’s still a little shocking for me.”