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Brisbane surgeons drag pillowcase from stomach of hungry python

WARNING - DISTRESSING CONTENT: A python who accidentally ate a pillowcase in Brisbane has undergone surgery to have the inanimate object removed.

The snake's concerned owner had called veterinarian Joshua Llinas following their python's strange meal earlier in October.

They suspected the black headed python, named Severus, had ingested pillowcase along with food and waited a few days to see if the snake regurgitated it.

"(She's a) very experienced keeper. She knew what happened and was prepared, she knew what was going to have to happen," Dr Llinas said

The veterinarian told said the item must have stuck to the snake's food.

The snake had to have surgery after ingesting a pillowcase. Source: HerpVet/ Facebook
The snake had to have surgery after ingesting a pillowcase. Source: HerpVet/ Facebook

“He has no hands, so he would have just kept eating it until everything was gone," he said.

The slip was in a temporary enclosure as a hiding place for Severus, as his owner had been moving house and the snake had become stressed.

She believed he had retreated into the pillowcase to eat a meal, but instead ingested the entire thing.

It is believed the pillowcase stuck to the black headed python's food. Source: HerpVet/ Facebook
It is believed the pillowcase stuck to the black headed python's food. Source: HerpVet/ Facebook

Graphic images of the reptile's surgery were uploaded to the HerpVet Facebook page earlier in the month.

The procedure, which included a coeliotomy followed by a gastrotomy, took about 45 minutes and was potentially lifesaving for the snake.

Dr Llinas said the pillowcase was removed in a way that would cause minimal damage to the animal's stomach.

The snake is said to be recovering well. Source: HerpVet/ Facebook
The snake is said to be recovering well. Source: HerpVet/ Facebook


"It was a good result and the snake is going well," he told Yahoo7 News.

He said reptiles do eat inappropriate things from time to time, and some other strange objects he has seen them ingest include paper towels, golf balls, fake eggs and plant material.

"It's just important to not to leave any reptile unsupervised while eating," he said.

The snake's owner will resume feeding it shortly.