19 September 2023 , 17:09
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An 11ft python slithered through a conservatory window and attacked a horrified grandad.
Rob Byrne, 61, was bitten on the arm after the male reticulated python slipped through blinds. Rob said: “It tried to bite me and coil around me. Its fangs nicked my arm and drew blood as it tried to sink its teeth in. It caught the back of my arm with one fang and the other fang got caught in my polo shirt.
“Once I shoved it away, it withdrew to halfway across the conservatory. But it pinned me in the corner and it was sort of waving and looking at me. At that point my wife and granddaughter came into the conservatory, saw it, and screamed.” He said the snake was spooked by the noise and slithered back out of his window in Bishopstoke, Hants.
Rob, who was treated by paramedics, says such a big snake could have killed his granddaughter, two, adding: “I did not expect to be attacked by a giant python in my own home. They are not native to this country. Somebody has either been irresponsible and let it go, or it has escaped because of inadequate measures.”
The python makes its escape (Solent News & Photo Agency)The snake was later captured and taken to the National Centre for Reptile Welfare in Kent. Chris Newman, its director, warned: “Snakes are escape artists. You’ve only got to turn your back for a second and the snake will have disappeared. We really don’t recommend taking snakes out into the garden.”
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The python’s owner remains unknown. Rob, retired from the gas industry, has now written to the Government asking for more controls on python ownership.