In September 2025, a 75-year-old woman with Alzheimer's disease went missing for two days after entering the mountains of Yunyang, Shiyan, Hubei to collect firewood. Police dog Zhuifeng used the scent from her pillowcase, tracked through mountain paths and wild slopes for about two hours, and finally signaled toward a steep bramble-covered slope where the woman had fallen more than ten meters and become trapped.

Yaoling Village, Liubei Town, Yunyang District, Shiyan, Hubei, China

A pillowcase became the way home

On September 25, the 75-year-old woman went into the mountains to collect firewood and did not return. After two days of searching, her family called police. Dog handlers Zhao Zongbo and Li Junwei arrived with the search dog Zhuifeng.

The family provided a pillowcase the woman used every day. Zhao let Zhuifeng smell it repeatedly to build a scent memory. Officers searched remote paths and slopes, while family members checked the firewood routes she often took.

Zhuifeng suddenly quickened his pace

Hubei Daily reported that Zhuifeng had taken part in many missing-person searches before. Once in the mountain, he kept his nose close to the ground and plants, stopping at forks to confirm direction before moving on.

About three kilometers in, the vegetation became denser and thorns and vines formed a net. Zhuifeng suddenly pulled harder toward the old Hualuwa farm area. There, officers found scattered firewood, exactly what the woman had gone to collect.

A faint response came from below

Zhuifeng did not stop at the firewood. He circled a steep slope, sniffed repeatedly, and barked toward the lower brambles. Zhao called in the direction Zhuifeng indicated. After several calls, a faint reply came from below.

The woman had slipped while trying to pick wild persimmons for water, fallen more than ten meters, and become trapped in thorny brush for two full days. She was still conscious when found, which gave rescuers the time they needed.

Together, they brought her out

Zhao tied one end of a rescue rope to a strong tree and the other around his waist, then cut through the brambles with a machete. Zhuifeng stayed beside him, sometimes pawing away low grass and sometimes watching the handler closely.

After a narrow passage opened, Zhao and family members descended and found the woman curled deep in the thorns. Zhao carried her on his back while holding the rope, relatives supported from behind, and Zhuifeng followed along the side. After more than twenty minutes, they reached safer ground.

Not only the result, but the path

The ending was fortunate: a woman missing for two days was brought back. But behind that luck were a family call, police judgment, a handler's dangerous descent, and Zhuifeng turning the scent of a pillowcase into a direction in the forest.

Rescue animals rarely have lines in the story. They cannot explain their choices or know that they helped a family breathe again. This archive records Zhuifeng to remember the path into the brambles, and the silent partner who kept his nose low and moved forward.

Timeline

• 2025-09-25 The 75-year-old woman went into the mountains to collect firewood and went missing.
• 2025-09-27 Her family called police; Yunyang handlers arrived with search dog Zhuifeng.
• Search began Zhuifeng used the woman's pillowcase as a scent source and tracked through mountain paths.
• About two hours later Zhuifeng found firewood near the old Hualuwa farm area and signaled down a steep slope.
• During rescue Police used a rope and machete to open a passage and carried the woman to safety.
• 2025-09-29 Hubei Daily reported the rescue.

Public source

• Hubei Daily: police dog follows scent and helps find a missing elder in two hours