A 14ft-long python will soon be introduced to its new enclosure after being found slithering around rural west Dorset last week.

The huge snake, since identified as a female Burmese python, was spotted in Scotts Lane, off the A35, near Monkton Wyld Holiday Park.

No-one has come forward to claim it prompting the theory it may have been abandoned.

It has since been found a new home over the border in Somerset and a fundraising campaign is underway to pay for an enclosure.

Peter Bacon, a local resident, was one of the first to spot the reptile in a verge last Tuesday (June 11).

He said: “I was driving when I saw this humongous snake which is something you normally don’t see every day.

“I stopped the van, turned off the engine and took a picture to show my wife, and to put it on Facebook in the hopes that someone would recognise it.”

Mr Bacon added that there was a crowd of people gathering around the snake at the time, who reported it to the authorities.

Simon Prentice, the owner of specialist reptile shop and breeding centre Phelsuma Farm in Ilton, Somerset, was alerted to the snake by Coombefield Vets in Axminster after guests at the holiday park reported it.

Mr Prentice initially thought the call was fake, until he arrived on the scene.

He said: “I received a call saying that a massive Burmese python was down the lane from the holiday park.

“At first, I thought it was a hoax, or someone was exaggerating the size, but it was a 14-foot python.

“It was really cold, but very much alive and weighs a tonne. We have not weighed it officially, but it took three of us to lift it into the van.”

You can watch the full video of the dramatic rescue of the snake on the News' website. 

After contacting the National Centre for Reptile Welfare, which said they would be happy to provide care for the snake, Mr Prentice decided to keep it, and has started construction on an enclosure big enough to house it.

He said: “It’s been hard work building the enclosure. It’s nearly finished. We will be introducing the snake to the new enclosure on Saturday. 

“The enclosure is 14ft long, 7ft high and 6ft deep."

Mr Prentice has started a JustGiving campaign to raise funds for the building materials of the enclosure. He would also like to build another large enclosure for the site’s African Spurred tortoise, Ben. So far, the fundraiser has received 25 per cent of its £2,000 target, raising £517.

According to Mr Prentice, a previous owner recognised the female python, which is believed to have been imported from Germany around 2018.

The previous owner told Mr Prentice that they sold the reptile during lockdown. The species is native to Burma, India and South East Asia, is not venomous, and is a constrictor.

If you would like to support the JustGiving fundraiser, visit https://shorturl.at/UyLHC