Dog Dyed By Thief Escapes Again

SAN JACINTO (CBSLA.com) — Days after the Lowery family were reunited with their dog, a pit bull they say was stolen from their San Jacinto yard and dyed black, they found "Coco" missing again Sunday.

The 8-month-old dog apparently burrowed out of the backyard when the family let her outside for a "potty break," according to Heather Lowery.

When they discovered the dog had gotten out, Lowery said it brought her to tears.

The escape artist had managed to dig her way out Saturday night, too, but sat near the front door until the Lowery's found her.

This time Coco didn't hang around the house.

The Lowery's organized a search with friends and relatives for the dog Sunday morning but were unable to find Coco.

It's been a tumultuous month for the family. Around Thanksgiving, Lowery adopted Coco to help her two children cope with the deaths of two puppies birthed by her other dog, a boxer.

Soon after, Coco disappeared from their backyard and Lowery suspects, that time, someone had taken her.

She turned up this week at a Riverside County animal shelter but was a changed dog: whoever had Coco had apparently used human hair dye to conceal the dog's identity. Gone was her reddish-brown coat and white patches -- the dog was now black.

By Friday, Coco's coat had already faded to a chocolate brown.

She also was recently spayed and still bears the surgery stitches on her stomach.

Lowery asked anyone with information about Coco to contact her directly at (951) 537-0018.

(©2014 CBS Local Media, a division of CBS Radio Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Wire services contributed to this report.)