Aussie dad’s startling 26kg find while locking up home

Forget drop bears, this Aussie dad nearly had a heart attack thanks to a monster python with a serious case of the midnight munchies… for his roof!

The Mareeba local (near Cairns, for those playing at home), was locking up his house on Tuesday night when he heard a weird noise in the yard.

Thinking it was just a rogue possum, he glanced over and nearly choked on his own spit.

“I know we don’t get anacondas, but this IS an anaconda! He’s like a dinosaur,” the startled homeowner told Jay Everdeen from Close Encounters Reptile Removal over the phone just minutes later.

The seasoned reptile handler quickly headed out for what he thought was a standard call-out but when he saw the snake, even he needed a Bex and a good lie down.

MORE NEWS

‘F**king disgusting’: Backyard poo nightmare exposed

Rare backyard find that can kill you

‘Killing the host’: Alien plant takes over major Aus city

An Aussie dad was stunned to discover a 26kg python trying to get into his roof. Source: Jay Everdeen/Close Encounters Reptile Removal

The colossal 5.2-metre scrub python was impressive beast. Source: Jay Everdeen/Close Encounters Reptile Removal

A colossal 5.2-metre scrub python, thicker than your average VB longneck and tipping the scales at 26.4kg, was wrapped around a downpipe like a green and gold scarf.

“When I saw him I was like, ‘oh geez, this is big’,” Jay told Yahoo News Australia.

“When I had hold of him, my fingertips didn’t touch!”

With the help of his 12-year-old daughter, Mr Everdeen wrestled with the non-venomous python for a full hour.

“He’s just got that much power, and that’s why it took an hour,” he said.

“Snakes like that you can get tangled up in and then you’re stuck, you won’t get out of it.”

The snake catcher and his four children held up the reptile to show his neighbour’s kids its hefty size before relocating it. Source: Jay Everdeen/Close Encounters Reptile Removal

After a serious battle of wills, they managed to bag the beast, but it was so massive they needed a beach towel to carry it.

The next day, Mr Everdeen and his kids showed off their catch to the wide-eyed neighbours before releasing it back into the bush.

“A good snake is a beautiful snake to see in the wild,” he said.

The post Aussie dad’s startling 26kg find while locking up home appeared first on realestate.com.au.