Coco, a reddish-brown pit bull with white markings, went missing from her Southern California home on Thanksgiving. Nearly a month later, she was found and reunited with her owners — but she was a different color. Riverside County animal services officials made the match when they scanned a stray, black dog for an implanted microchip and found she was listed as an 8-month-old reddish-brown pit bull adopted in October from a San Jacinto shelter. Before and after: Coco used to be a reddish-brown pit bull (left) but was dyed black after it was stolen. Officials say the deception was to keep its owners from getting the pooch back . 'She actually recognized me when I went in there to verify it was her,' owner Heather Lowery told NBC Los Angeles. 'She shakes her whole body as if she were Pluto basically, and she did it again today. She jumped right on (me) and took pictures with me.' Officials believe Coco was stolen and dyed in an act of deception to make it harder for Lowry to find her, said Riverside County Field and Shelter Deputy Director Frank Corvino. Officials believe the dog escaped from the thief's property. 'The dye job is not very good,' Corvino said. 'But it would work if someone's looking for their missing, reddish-brown dog.' Coco's human, Heather Lowery, said the pit bull immediately recognized her, although Lowery was surprised to discover her new color . Animal Services spokesman John Welsh said Coco shouldn't suffer any long-term consequences from the dye. Lowry said she was shocked when she learned what had happened to Coco. 'I didn't think someone would go as far as to dying a dog's fur to keep them,' she said.
Coco disappeared from her Southern California home on Thanksgiving .
A month later, she was found by animal control officers, but was a completely different color from her usual reddish brown .
Officials say the black dye was an attempt to deceive the people looking for Coco .
Coco, a reddish-brown pit bull with white markings, went missing from her Southern California home on Thanksgiving. Nearly a month later, she was found and reunited with her owners — but she was a different color. Riverside County animal services officials made the match when they scanned a stray, black dog for an implanted microchip and found she was listed as an 8-month-old reddish-brown pit bull adopted in October from a San Jacinto shelter. Before and after: Coco used to be a reddish-brown pit bull (left) but was dyed black after it was stolen. Officials say the deception was to keep its owners from getting the pooch back . 'She actually recognized me when I went in there to verify it was her,' owner Heather Lowery told NBC Los Angeles. 'She shakes her whole body as if she were Pluto basically, and she did it again today. She jumped right on (me) and took pictures with me.' Officials believe Coco was stolen and dyed in an act of deception to make it harder for Lowry to find her, said Riverside County Field and Shelter Deputy Director Frank Corvino. Officials believe the dog escaped from the thief's property. 'The dye job is not very good,' Corvino said. 'But it would work if someone's looking for their missing, reddish-brown dog.' Coco's human, Heather Lowery, said the pit bull immediately recognized her, although Lowery was surprised to discover her new color . Animal Services spokesman John Welsh said Coco shouldn't suffer any long-term consequences from the dye. Lowry said she was shocked when she learned what had happened to Coco. 'I didn't think someone would go as far as to dying a dog's fur to keep them,' she said.
markings, went missing from her Southern California home on Thanksgiving. Nearly a month later, she was found and reunited with her owners — but she was a different color. Riverside County Officials say the deception was to keep its looking for their missing, reddish-brown dog.'