4 Kids Saved from Amazon After Plane Crash Pay Tribute to Missing Dog Who Helped Rescue Them

The Belgian shepherd Wilson helped in the search efforts for the four siblings and is now lost in the jungle, according to Colombia's Ministry of Defense

The children rescued last week from the Amazon jungle after surviving 40 days in the wild following a plane crash are paying tribute to a missing search and rescue dog.

According to The Guardian, the Belgian shepherd — named Wilson — helped in the search efforts for the four siblings and is now lost in the Colombian jungle.

The two eldest rescued children have shown appreciation for the canine by putting pen to paper in Bogotá's military hospital.

Lesly Jacobombaire Mucutuy, 13, and her sibling Soleiny Jacobombaire Mucutuy, 9, have been creating crayon drawings of Wilson, as shown in photos released by Colombia's Ministry of Defense on Tuesday.

In Lesly's drawing, posted on Twitter, a dog is depicted playing near a tree and a stream as the sun shines. In Soleiny's, a dog sits beside a large flower under the sun.

Related: 'My Mother Is Dead': Rescuers Reveal First Words of Kids Who Survived 40 Days in Amazon After Crash

Per CNN, military officials and the children's family believe Wilson encountered the children independently during the search efforts. The children's grandfather said the Special Forces search dog became the "faithful friend" of the children and "accompanied them on several occasions."

Colombian military spokesperson Pedro Arnulfo Sánchez Suárez said the children "spent three or four days with Wilson and said that they (found) him quite skinny."

Search efforts for Wilson are still ongoing.

"We have a saying, 'We never leave an element behind,' even less the four children, we would not leave Wilson. But we are also conscious of how difficult it is to find him in the depths of a hostile but blessed jungle," continued Suárez.

Related: Mom of 4 Kids Who Went 40 Days in the Amazon After Plane Crash Initially Survived, Oldest Child Says

On Tuesday, General Helder Giraldo said the search for Wilson would continue until the dog is found. "We have about 70 commandos looking for him right now," he said, per CNN.

The four children, who also include Tien Ranoque Mucutuy, 4, and Cristin Ranoque Mucutuy, 1, were discovered alive on June 9 —  40 days after their plane crash took place on May 1 — CNN previously reported.

The siblings were traveling with their mother and two other adults, who all died, from the Amazonian village of Araracuara to San Jose del Guaviare at the time of the plane crash, according to CBS. The outlet reported that the pilot declared an emergency after the aircraft's engine failed but before falling off the radar.

According to The Guardian, the siblings, who were found about three miles away from the crashed plane, told rescuers that for periods during their time in the jungle, they had been accompanied by a large dog.

That animal is believed to have been Wilson, one of 10 military sniffer dogs used in the search operation for the children.

Wilson was last seen on June 8, the day before the children's rescue. "We saw him about 40 meters away, and we tried to call him," dog handler Carlos Villegas told local outlet El Tiempo, per The Guardian. "My companion drew close to him, he tried to play with him in order to grab him, but [Wilson] ran off."

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An update on the children's progress was given by the children's grandfather, Fidencio Valencia. Last week, he told the media outlet Noticia Caracol that they were "eating a little" and "drawing to let off steam."

Valencia shared that the children told him they survived the jungle by hiding in tree trunks to avoid contact with snakes and other potentially dangerous creatures.

Following their discovery on June 9, Colombia's President Gustavo Petro said that the children survived 40 days in the Amazon because of "their learning from indigenous families and their learning of living in the jungle," per CNN.

He also said their time in the jungle was an example of "total survival that will be remembered in history."

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