Rescue dog found fatally injured on 101 Freeway after being stolen from Camarillo facility

A rescue dog that was stolen from a Camarillo facility has died after being found abused and injured on the side of the 101 Freeway.

Paw Works, an animal rescue in Ventura County, says the dog named Pretty Girl was taken in an early-morning burglary at its Camarillo facility. It wasn't long before she was found, but in very bad shape.

Pretty Girl was found on the side of the 101 Freeway along the Conejo Grade with life-threatening injuries, possibly from being struck by a car, according to Brittany Vizcarra, Paw Works' director of operations. The dog was believed to be suffering from severe bleeding in her abdomen, and bruising and swelling around her rectum. Pretty Girl eventually died of her injuries.

"We need to find the person who did this, because this is not OK. She did not deserve this, she's a good dog," Vizcara said in a tearful video she recorded as Pretty Girl was being rushed to a veterinarian.

Paw Works released surveillance video of the break-in, which showed a person in a hoodie sweatshirt and shorts walking around the ring of dog cages with a bright light, possibly a flashlight app enabled on a cell phone. The person stopped at one cage and tried to urge the dog out, but when it refused, the intruder went to another cage in the corner and apparently put a rope around the dog and pulled it out of the cage.

In the video, the dog now known to be Pretty Girl appeared to struggle against the rope and the person was forced to drag her out as the other dogs in the facility barked wildly.

"We think that she was fighting for her life," Vizcara said. "She is not a dog that takes easy to strangers. She's a very loyal dog, and if you saw in that video, she was fighting him off, and he was hitting her."

Paw Works is offering a reward for information about the intruder. Anyone with information about the break-in can call Paw Works at (805) 799-3937.