A family from Kromdraai was not only robbed of their belongings, but also of their beloved dog Coco who tried to protect them from intruders.
“My two other dogs are lost without her, so it’s not just her human family suffering,” an emotional Lizelle Labuschagne told the News.
On Wednesday, 25 March at about 3.30am while Lizelle, her wife Belinda and their daughter were sleeping, two armed men broke into their house and robbed them.
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Belinda and their daughter were allegedly sleeping in one of the bedrooms while Lizelle and the dogs were in another bedroom.
Belinda said she was woken up by one of the robbers pointing a gun at her. She was then allegedly ordered to sit on the edge of the bed while they tied her up and instructed the little girl to lie down.
According to Lizelle, the other robber went into the bedroom where she and Coco, their Rottweiler were sleeping. He woke her up, pointed a gun at her and told her to come with him. When Coco jumped up to protect Lizelle, the intruder shot Coco in the face.
A post mortem found that Coco was shot in the mouth and died from organ failure.
“None of us go into the room where she was shot. The door remains locked. Coco was not a pet, she was part of the family,” explained Lizelle.
Coco was born on 3 January 2017, and Lizelle said she was the runt of the litter. They got her at six weeks old and the young Rottweiler turned three this year.
“My wife believes a dog chooses you. When she held Coco for the first time Coco immediately started chewing on her hair. Being Afrikaans, Belinda named her KouKou. I said the spelling should be Coco.
“Everything about Coco was special – the weird way she laid down, how she hated raw liver but loved raw eggs, the way she took food with her lips and would not even take a piece of biltong without first smelling if it was okay.”
The family used to take Coco to events with them to teach others that Rottweilers are not bad dogs. “The way an owner trains them and does not ignore them determine their behaviour. Coco slept in our bed from day one.”
The family confirmed that a case had been opened with the Muldersdrift Police.
This brave pup has left an empty place not only in her family’s home, but also in their hearts.
