A massive cobra was caught hiding behind a terrified family's washing machine in Thailand.

The 10ft venomous snake had slithered into cramped space while hiding from dogs in a neighbourhood in Chanthaburi province.

Housewife Nirit Mingsorn said she had heard her pets barking in front of her house. When she went outside to see the cause of the ruckus, she saw the cobra slipping beneath the washing machine.

The scared resident pleaded for help from her neighbours, but they refused, equally frightened due to the reptile's formidable size.

She later called a team of expert snake wranglers to evacuate the creature from her house.

As night had already fallen, the specialists shone flashlights to illuminate the cobra's hiding spot. They found that it had curled up next to the washing machine's hose.

The experienced wildlife handlers swiftly caught it using snake poles despite the cobra's attempts at fending them off, with the operation wrapping up in over 10 minutes.

Nirit said: 'I was curious why my dogs were barking continuously. When I went outside, I saw the cobra and screamed. It was huge.

'I called my neighbour for help, but when he saw how big it was, he said he couldn't do anything, so we had to call the rescue team.

'I'm grateful to them for catching the cobra so quickly.'