Queensland woman wakes to python on her chest
A 2.5 metre python was an unwanted guest in Rachel Bloor's bedroom. Photo: Supplied
A Brisbane woman woke up in the middle of the night on Monday with a heavy weight pressed on her chest.
Half asleep, Rachel Bloor thought it was her pet labradoodle nuzzling against her.
But when she reached her hand down for a pat, she felt a smooth, curled creature, and she had a frightening realisation.
Bloor woke up her husband and told him to turn on the light. He confirmed the horrifying reality.
âHe goes, âOh baby. Donât move. Thereâs like a 2.5 metre python on you,â Bloor told the BBC.
Her first thought was to get their dogs out of the room, which her husband did.
That left Bloor alone in the bed trying to extricate herself from underneath the reptile.
âI was just trying to shimmy out from under the covers⌠in my mind, going, âIs this really happening? This is so bizarreâ,â she told the BBC.
Bloorâs bedroom is on the second floor of their home in Brisbane. She suspects it squeezed through the plantation shutters covering the window and onto her bed below.
âIt was that big that even though it had been curled up on me, part of its tail was still out the shutter,â she said.
Rachel Bloor guided the python through the plantation shutters and out the window. Photo: Supplied
Thatâs also how Bloor managed to safely remove the python from their home without having to call snake catchers.
Bloor guided the snake to the window, and it slithered out the same way it probably came in.
âI grabbed him, [and] even then he didnât seem overly freaked out. He sort of just wobbled in my hand.â
Having grown up on acreage, Bloor wasnât terrified by the encounter.
She told the BBC sheâs just glad it wasnât a cane toad.
âI canât stand them, like they make me dry retch. So if it was a cane toad, it would have scared me.â
Carpet pythons are non-venomous and generally docile. They are more likely to retreat than confront people.
They are found in Queenslandâs forests, woodlands, and urban areas.
Although generally found in trees, the carpet python also hunts on the ground, opting to eat small mammals, birds, and reptiles.
