A resident was shocked when she found a huge monitor lizard lying at her front gate in Thailand.

Potjana Phansermwit, 56, was watching TV when her pet dogs began barking furiously at the entrance of her property in Chonburi.

She checked outside and found the 8ft beast lounging on the street outside. Potjana then called reptile catchers for help when the creature tried to crawl under her gate.

CCTV footage shows a wildlife rescue team dragging the monitor lizard away as it rolled on the ground trying to break free. They bound its limbs with rope and hauled it away on a pickup truck.

Potjana said: 'It was lightly raining at the time. I was inside when I heard the dogs barking loudly. I thought someone might have come to visit, so I checked the CCTV to see who it was.

'At first, I thought I saw a python, but when I zoomed in, it was actually a large monitor lizard. No matter how much the dog barked, it wouldn't leave. It even tried to get through the gate so I quickly called for help.'

The monitor lizard was later freed into the wilderness far from the neighbourhood.

Asian water monitor lizards normally live in canals, swamps, sewers and ponds in cities in Thailand. They feed on fish, snakes, frogs and scraps of food left by humans.

The reptiles are aggressive when threatened and have a mildly venomous bite which sometimes carries harmful bacteria. The Godzilla-like reptiles are also a protected species in the country so their population thrives.