Former Shelter Dog Helps Save 3-Year-Old Girl Left Naked And Alone

RAPID RIVER, Mich. (WWJ/AP) - A former shelter dog in Michigan is being credited with saving the life of a 3-year-old girl who was found naked and alone in freezing weather.

The Delta Animal Shelter shared a letter on Facebook from the family of Peanut, an abused dog that arrived at the shelter nearly a year ago. The family writes that Peanut alerted her owner that she wanted to go outside Friday and took him to a field behind the house on Michigan's Upper Peninsula.

"He said he could hear her running around upstairs but didn't understand why. He let her outside where she went barreling into the field behind our house at full speed. My husband followed her and to his surprise, he found a naked, shivering, 3-year-old girl curled up in a ball."

He brought the girl inside and called 911. "By the time the ambulance and police arrived, the little girl could only say one thing – 'doggie.'"

The Delta County Sheriff's Office confirms the story and says the girl is OK.

Authorities say they found the parents nearby in a residence with "unsafe and unsanitary living conditions." The girl and another young girl were removed from the home. Prosecutors are reviewing the case.

© Copyright 2017 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. The Associated Press contributed to this report.