North Texas man offers reward for information leading to return of exotic monitor lizard

Harriet Ramos
·3 min read
14

Trey Smoak’s roughneck monitor lizard was out of his sight for about 10 minutes Friday when the Crowley resident went to put up groceries. When Smoak opened the front door the cage was still outside, but Dino was gone.

Smoak said he spent the rest of the day talking to animal control and knocking on doors in his north Crowley neighborhood. He also posted on social media about the missing reptile. Some Good Samaritans saw the post and came to help look, but with no success.

“He’s a tropical lizard, you know, and they require a lot of humidity and a lot of heat,” Smoak said. “And yeah, I’m worried about him, but whatever situation he’s in right now is not good.”

Smoak said the cage was locked tight, but he knows there’s a chance Dino managed to slip out. He’s also concerned that a passerby saw the exotic animal sitting unguarded for a few minutes and decided to take him home.

Dino is around 2-and-a-half feet long, according to Smoak, and resembles a small dinosaur. He also has a big appetite and needs special care.

“If somebody does have him, they’re not set up for it, and I don’t think that they’re ... prepared to spend the amount of money that it takes to feed this guy,” Smoak said.

Smoak found Dino at a local feed store about a year ago. When he first saw the monitor lizard he wanted to buy him, but Smoak said the price was too high.

Undeterred, Smoak kept coming by the store to ask about the reptile and was able to talk the price down.

“I really wanted it, you know, it wasn’t something that I just did on a whim.” Smoak said. “I really wanted this animal, and I’ve gone out of my way ... to try to get him set up properly.”

Dino measured less than a foot long when Smoak brought him home, but he recently outgrew his indoor enclosure. Smoak said he had planned to spend Friday and Saturday building a new habitat that would incorporate a 500-gallon aquarium and around $1,000 worth of special features such as waterfalls and fog machines.

Trey Smoak said his roughneck monitor lizard had outgrown his enclosure and he going to build him a new one over the weekend. Instead he spent Friday looking all over the neighborhood for Dino. The two-and-a-half foot reptile went missing from outside Smoak’s Crowley home. Trey Smoak
Trey Smoak said his roughneck monitor lizard had outgrown his enclosure and he going to build him a new one over the weekend. Instead he spent Friday looking all over the neighborhood for Dino. The two-and-a-half foot reptile went missing from outside Smoak’s Crowley home. Trey Smoak

Smoak said he will pay $100 for information on Dino’s whereabouts. Anyone with information is asked to call or message Smoak at 817-422-8571.

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