PAINESVILLE, Ohio — The Lake Humane Society is raising money for the care of an iguana injured in a bizarre incident inside a Painesville restaurant.
Officers were called to a Perkins restaurant April 16 for a disorderly customer. Police said 49-year-old Arnold Teeter pulled the iguana out from under his shirt, started swinging it over his head and threw it at the manager.
Teeter was arrested a short time later, and charged with disorderly conduct, resisting arrest and cruelty to animals.
The iguana, now named Copper, suffered a leg fracture. The Lake Humane Society said she also has metabolic bone diseases and was missing a portion of her tail.
The lizard is under protective custody and the humane society is waiting for permission to perform surgery. The estimated cost of care is $1,600.
“We need your help to give this innocent reptile a second chance at life,” the human society said Thursday.
When Teeter appeared in court last month, he was disruptive and refused to surrender the iguana.
