Pet parrot escapes jaws of death by inches after python scare

A pet parrot in Singapore was rescued in the nick of time when its owners discovered a huge python coiled around the bird’s cage.

The 1.5m long (5ft) snake was found on in Melvin Yap's home.

Yap extricated the python and passed it to an animal rescue group. He told the BBC that their pet bird, named Nikki, survived unharmed, but was “petrified”.

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Yap said he was fast asleep early yesterday morning when he was woken by frantic screams in his house.

“My domestic helper was in the process of cleaning the bird's cage. The snake was just right in front of her, and she didn't see it until my wife spotted it and screamed ‘Snake!’,” he said.

Yap rushed downstairs with his 10-year-old daughter, who assisted him as he “coaxed” the snake into a large plastic bag with a stick.

His encounter, which was covered by local media outlets, “drew astonished responses from Singaporeans, not least for the way in which he caught the reptile,” says the BBC. “STICK and PLASTIC BAG???? Salute ah!” wrote one Facebook commenter.

But Yap said he “just wanted to quickly contain the situation, and ensure my loved ones didn't get hurt”.

“After I caught it, I realised it was more scared of us than the other way round. It was in defensive mode, curling up and trying to protect itself.”

Although pythons do not have a venomous bite, “there have been reports of the giant animals attacking people,” says Metro.

In March this year “an Indonesian man was apparently swallowed by a python, while earlier this month another Indonesian was badly hurt after wrestling with a python – which was subsequently killed and eaten,” adds the paper.