A little girl stumbles across a deadly boa constrictor's 5FT shed skin

A deadly boa constrictor is on the loose after a girl found the reptile's 5FT shed skin - taller than HER.Stunned seven-year-old Amelia Drewett made the discovery while out walking with her grandfather in a leafy residential suburb in Oxford.Her grandmother has since appealed for the owner of the skin to come forward on Facebook - but the whereabouts of the snake is a mystery.Boa constrictors are non-venomous but have been known to kill large animals by squeezing them to death.The section of skin was found by a busy road and measures around 5ft but is incomplete - meaning the snake could be several feet longer in total.It is now hanging up in her grandparents' house in Headington, about 100m from where it discovered.Debra Drewett, 65, said: "I couldn't believe my eyes when they brought it home.

It goes from almost floor to ceiling."They thought it was just plastic in the brambles under the bridge, but they took a closer look and it was this huge snakeskin."Nobody's come up with any sort of reasonable explanation for how it got there.""I was really worried and had the image of a huge snake slithering around someone's garden."Debra emailed the RSPCA after the discovery and spoke to Evolution Reptiles in nearby Kidlington, who told them it was a boa constrictor.The shop does not sell that type of snake as they grow too big and assistant Nicole Head believes it was dumped deliberately.She said: "I can imagine somebody's probably let it go, as a large snake is pretty hard to lose."It's not the first time we've heard or seen this happen, but we're keeping our eye out to see if anyone's lost it."If it's scared it's going to be worried, but we can't imagine it'll cause harm."This view was echoed by Colin Stevenson, head of education at Crocodiles of the World zoo in Brize Norton, Oxfordshire.He revealed the boa would be feasting on rodents and small birds and the climate meant it was unlikely to survive until Christmas.Mr Stevenson said: "It's not going to eat your cat.

You wouldn't want it to bite you, but it would only give you a nasty wound."Most of these reptiles aren't going to do too well in the wild in England."It's certainly too cold for them to thrive, unless they can find somewhere warm or protected."A licence to keep a boa constrictor is not needed as they are not venomous, so not deemed a dangerous wild animal.The RSPCA did not respond to a request for comment.

A deadly boa constrictor is on the loose after a girl found the reptile's 5FT shed skin - taller than HER.Stunned seven-year-old Amelia Drewett made the discovery while out walking with her grandfather in a leafy residential suburb in Oxford.Her grandmother has since appealed for the owner of the skin to come forward on Facebook - but the whereabouts of the snake is a mystery.Boa constrictors are non-venomous but have been known to kill large animals by squeezing them to death.The section of skin was found by a busy road and measures around 5ft but is incomplete - meaning the snake could be several feet longer in total.It is now hanging up in her grandparents' house in Headington, about 100m from where it discovered.Debra Drewett, 65, said: "I couldn't believe my eyes when they brought it home.

It goes from almost floor to ceiling."They thought it was just plastic in the brambles under the bridge, but they took a closer look and it was this huge snakeskin."Nobody's come up with any sort of reasonable explanation for how it got there.""I was really worried and had the image of a huge snake slithering around someone's garden."Debra emailed the RSPCA after the discovery and spoke to Evolution Reptiles in nearby Kidlington, who told them it was a boa constrictor.The shop does not sell that type of snake as they grow too big and assistant Nicole Head believes it was dumped deliberately.She said: "I can imagine somebody's probably let it go, as a large snake is pretty hard to lose."It's not the first time we've heard or seen this happen, but we're keeping our eye out to see if anyone's lost it."If it's scared it's going to be worried, but we can't imagine it'll cause harm."This view was echoed by Colin Stevenson, head of education at Crocodiles of the World zoo in Brize Norton, Oxfordshire.He revealed the boa would be feasting on rodents and small birds and the climate meant it was unlikely to survive until Christmas.Mr Stevenson said: "It's not going to eat your cat.

You wouldn't want it to bite you, but it would only give you a nasty wound."Most of these reptiles aren't going to do too well in the wild in England."It's certainly too cold for them to thrive, unless they can find somewhere warm or protected."A licence to keep a boa constrictor is not needed as they are not venomous, so not deemed a dangerous wild animal.The RSPCA did not respond to a request for comment.