A 13ft long python sparked panic after it was found coiled inside a farmer's chicken coop hunting for food in the night.

Jeerawat Niyonkhet, 43, saw the hungry snake silently coiled on the ceiling of his coop in Ang Thong, central Thailand, watching his livestock below on October 19.

The shocked farmer immediately let out dozens of his chickens to save them from the reptile predator before calling the animal rescuers.

He said: "I saw a python when I was stepping into the coop last night. I was afraid that my chickens and would be eaten by the wild animal so I called for help."

The professional reptile handlers were able to capture the snake easily because it was not aggressive.

They grabbed it using long tongs and placed it inside a sack to be released later in the wild. The rescue operation only lasted ten minutes.

The relieved farmer was grateful that his chickens were not eaten by the python and thanked the rescuers who left with the snake.