WFAA-TV

JOHNSON COUNTY — Johnson County officials asked for help from state and federal law enforcement agencies Friday as the search continued for a two-year-old boy.

Kevin Brown disappeared from his front yard around 8 p.m. Thursday. Search dogs detected his scent on the family's property, but were unable to trace it further.

Kevin Brown was playing with his 4-year-old brother when the brother was bitten by fire ants and went inside, Johnson County sheriff Cpl. Pam Jetsel said. The parents were treating the ant bites with medicine inside the house while Kevin played outside. When the parents went to look for him, the toddler was gone.

The parents told officials they do not believe the boy was abducted because their dog always barks at vehicles and the dog did not bark, Cpl. Jetsel said.

"Everything that we searched last night is being re-searched today with helicopters, with horses, with ATVs, on foot," said Johnson County Sheriff Bob Alford.

The family lives in a mobile home in a rural part of Johnson County near Alvarado. A barn is on the property and there are lots of trees, Cpl. Jetsel said.

"He naps really, really hard when he goes to sleep, so he could be somewhere curled up asleep," said Debbie Hanks, who provides daycare for Kevin. "We're just hoping that's what it is."

The weather wasn't considered a major factor, although the youngster could become deyhdrated as the hours pass.

Calls went to those living within a five-mile radius, asking for residents to look for the toddler. About 40 volunteers offered their help in walking the grounds for the search.

"We have contacted known sex offenders in the area; that all checked out," Sheiff Alford said.

Johnson County officials have asked for assistance from the Texas Department of Public Safety and the FBI.

Kevin has black hair and brown eyes. He was wearing a yellow T-shirt and gray checkered shorts, and was not wearing shoes when last seen.

"He's a real sweet, real quiet little boy," Hanks said. "We just need more people to help look."

Anyone with information about Kevin should call the Johnson County sheriff at 817-556-6055.

WFAA-TV reporter Cynthia Vega in Johnson County and Dallas Morning News writer Kimberly Durnan contributed to this report.