Man Dies In US After Being Bitten By His Pet Lizard

A man in the US died after being bitten by his pet lizard - a Gila monster. The 34-year-old from Colorado had two pet lizards, carnivorous reptile that are native to the south-western United States, the BBC said. Their bites are not normally fatal to humans. The creature that bit the man on Monday 12 February was a juvenile that measured about 12 inches long, the outlet further said. The Jefferson County victim was taken to hospital and died last Friday.

The coroner's office has performed an autopsy but they are conducting additional toxicology testing to determine a precise cause of death.

Gila monsters are venomous lizards that can grow up to 54 centimetres in length. They are heavy, slow-moving reptiles. The lizard has been named after the Gila River in the US.

The BBC said that it is illegal to keep a Gila monster as pet in Colorado without a licence. The man also had tarantulas, which are also not legal to own.

A Colorado Parks and Wildlife criminal investigator told CBS News that they have been asked to remove the two Gila monsters from the home.

These reptiles will be taken to the wildlife rehab in another state, but the animal that bit the man will be transported to a lab before that. There, its venom will be extracted and studied to learn more about why its bite led to its owner's death.

The last human death due to a bite from Gila monster was reported in 1930.

That incident "was not even a medical journal case," Dr Nick Brandehoff, a medical toxicologist and reptile expert, told CBS News Colorado.

"The vast majority of bites cause local swelling and bleeding," he said.