An escaped pet python was caught after it slithered into a neighbour's house in Thailand.

The 13ft long albino ball python was somehow let loose while its owner was away and emerged in the terrified villager's home in Trat province on November 12.

The resident called volunteers to relocate the large serpent after stumbling upon it on the property.

Wildlife rescuers rushed to the scene and caught the white-and-yellow reptile inside a rubbish bin.

They hauled it out from its hiding spot using snake poles and took measurements before taking the creature away. They found that it was around 13ft long and weighed more than 30 kilograms.

Ekapak Paktachai, a rescue worker of the Sawang Boon Assistance Association, said: 'We received a report that a python had entered a house behind the Wat Buppharam School.

'The homeowner told us it belonged to a neighbour who was currently not at home.'

He added that the rescue team will be keeping the snake until its owner returns to pick it up.

The non-venomous ball python, sometimes called the royal python, is native to West and Central Africa. Its name comes from its defense mechanism of curling up into a ball when frightened.

Ball pythons are classified as 'Near Threatened' by the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List as the snakes are exploited by poachers for the exotic pet trade.