PORTLAND — For whoever swiped Betsy Smith’s scooter, the one with the big knobby tires for negotiating slushy snow, don’t just think of her, think of her pet French bulldog.

Smith, who lives at the North School apartments on Congress Street and has multiple sclerosis, relies on the scooter to get around and in the case of her 2-year-old pet, take him for walks several times a day.

Smith was coming home from an outing at 1 p.m. Sunday when her scooter, a souped-up affair she calls her “monster truck” got stuck in a snowbank in the courtyard of her apartment building. She was able to walk to her apartment and called a friend to help her retrieve the scooter.

By the time the friend could make it over, at about 7 p.m., the scooter was gone. Neighbors said they had seen it as recently as 5 p.m., she said

Smith estimated the value of the scooter at $2,000, but she said it’s more of a custom-made vehicle than something you would buy from a distributor and she doubts someone would steal it to sell.

“It’s hardly a commercial product. It’s handmade by this guy in Massachusetts, with piping and stuff. It’s not a good-looking scooter,” she said.

Anyone with information is asked to call Portland police at 874-8555.