Previously stolen pit bull dyed to disguise fur color goes missing again

SAN JACINTO, Calif. (KABC) -- A pit bull that had its fur dyed black when she was allegedly stolen has gone missing, again.

Owner Heather Lowry let her 8-month-old pit bull, Coco, into the backyard for a potty break around 9 p.m. Saturday. When Lowry returned 30 minutes later, Coco was gone. She had dug under a fence.

Lowry searched the neighborhood until 1 a.m. for her beloved pit bull. She resumed the search Sunday morning, but the dog was nowhere to be found.

Coco had been reunited with her owners this past week after allegedly being stolen from her yard during Thanksgiving, Lowry said. She wound up at Riverside County Animal Service after escaping from the alleged thief's yard. The suspect had tried to disguise Coco by dyeing her reddish brown fur black.

The dog's black dye job was fading and is more of a chocolate brown now, Lowry said. Coco also was recently spayed and has surgery stitches on her stomach.

Anyone with information about Coco is asked to call Lowry at (951) 537-0018.