Man bitten by 5ft snake ‘in genital area’ as he sat on toilet at home

The man had to be treated for minor injuries after the nightmarish incident

The reticulated python is known to be an excellent swimmer (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

A 65-year-old man got a rude awakening after a reticulated python bit him as he was sitting on the toilet at home.

The man, who has not been named, paid a visit to the bathroom at around 6am and felt a "pinch in the area of his genitals" sometime after he had sat down on the toilet.

He then turned around to see a 5ft foot (1.5 metres) albino snake in the toilet bowl.

The reticulated python, a constrictor native to Asia which can grow to a length of nearly 30ft (9m), is believed to have found its way into the toilet via the network of drains in the apartment block in the Austrian city of Graz.

The police said in a statement: “Shortly after he sat on the toilet the Graz resident – by his own account – felt a 'pinch' in the area of his genitals.”

The man needed treatment in hospital for minor injuries.

A reptile expert contacted by the emergency services removed the snake from the toilet, cleaned it and returned it to its owner.

Although the snake’s suspected route into the toilet could not be confirmed, it is thought to have escaped from a neighbour’s flat.

The 24-year-old neighbour, who owns 11 non-venumous constrictor snakes, has been reported to the prosecutors' office on suspicion of negligently causing bodily harm, the police said.

Reticulated pythons, which are native to southeast Asia, are the world's largest snakes and do not attack humans by nature. Their natural diet consists of mammals and sometimes birds.

While they are not venomous, they will constrict or bite if they feel threatened or if they mistake something for food.

There have been many reports of reticulated pythons killing humans throughout history. The latest report was in June 2020 when a 16-year-old Indonesian boy was suffocated to death by a 7m python near a waterfall in the Bombana Regency in Southeast Sulawesi, Indonesia.

A fully-grown reticulated python can open its jaws wide enough to swallow a human, as their lower jaws are not directly attached to their skulls, but the width of human shoulders can pose a problem to them.