"Godzilla" terrorizes California yahoo news

RIVERSIDE, Calif. – Animal services officers often get calls reporting "huge," monstrous reptiles, only to arrive and find an itty-bitty garden snake.

The 5-foot Monitor lizard wandering around a condo complex in the city of Riverside was way bigger than animal control officer Jenny Selter could have imagined.

"She said she saw it and almost jumped back in her truck," said John Welsh, spokesman for Riverside County Animal Services. "The residents were freaking out because here's the Godzilla-like creature walking down the sidewalk."

Selter managed to get a catch pole — a long pole with a loop at the end that's used to handle vicious dogs — around the animal's neck, Welsh said. It was docile at first, but then it started hissing.

A police officer grabbed the lizard's body while Selter held onto its sharp, lashing tail, and together they put it in a compartment of her truck that's usually used for large dogs.

Black-throated Monitor lizards are carnivorous, legal to own in California and native to the African grasslands and parts of Asia. Juveniles go for about $100 in pet stores, but they grow.

Back at the shelter, staff found the reptile was well-behaved for a Monitor lizard.

"The last one we had was nasty. But this one doesn't hiss and we were able to walk it around. It was investigating and didn't snap at anyone," Welsh said. "We suspect that it's been someone's pet for a long time, because it's so big. I think they might let it wander around the house. Maybe it sleeps on a bean bag?"

Welsh thinks the scaly pet might have escaped its cage or gotten loose while its owner was away, and he hoped its owner comes to claim it soon

"The residents were freaking out because here's the Godzilla-like creature walking down the sidewalk."

LOL, I can picture a monitor walking down the street on it's hind legs, breathing fire and knocking garbage cans over.

Yeah, its always funny to see peoples reactions

I loved this article when I read it this morning. I can picture all the neighbors screaming and running away and me telling my wife to run and get a piece of chicken out of the fridge. "Here kitty, kitty..."

"Yall needta hide yo kidz, hide yo wivez, and hide yo huzban cuz it be chasin errbody out hurr"

5-Foot Monitor Lizard Found Roaming Calif. Neighborhood

Posted on January 26, 2011 at 7:27am by Jonathon M. Seidl Print » Email » RIVERSIDE, Calif. (AP) — Animal services officers in California are looking for the owner of a 5-foot-long lizard that was found wandering around a condo complex.


Photo: Riverside County Department of Animal Services/KTLA

Animal services spokesman John Welsh says someone spotted the wayward lizard in Riverside on Tuesday afternoon. He says Officer Jenny Selter put a catch pole around its neck while a police officer grabbed the reptile’s body. They then slipped it into a compartment of Selter‘s vehicle that’s usually used for carrying large dogs.

Welsh says the animal is well-behaved for a Monitor lizard, and it likely has been someone’s pet for a long time. He suspects it escaped from its cage, perhaps while its owner was away, and hopes someone will claim it soon.

Black-throated Monitor lizards are carnivorous and native to the grasslands of Africa.

http://www.theblaze.com/stories/5-fo...-neighborhood/

Yo quiero Taco Bell!

Another terrorist captured