Brisbane resident Rachel Bloor experienced the wake-up call of a lifetime when she discovered an unexpected bedmate — a 2.5-meter carpet python coiled comfortably on her chest.
The terrifying encounter occurred in Bloor’s second-story bedroom where she initially mistook the massive reptile for one of her dogs. As she stirred from sleep, she quickly realized something wasn’t right. “To my horror, I realized it wasn’t my dog,” Bloor recounted of the moment she felt the snake’s smooth movement under her covers.
Her husband, who spotted the uninvited guest first, delivered the news with remarkable composure: “Oh baby. Don’t move. There is like a 2.5-meter python on you,” he told her.
What followed was a careful extraction operation. The couple’s first priority? Getting their dogs safely out of the room before they noticed the intruder. “I thought if my Dalmatian realized that there’s a snake there, it is gonna be carnage,” Bloor explained.
How did an 8-foot snake reach a second-floor bedroom?
The mystery was solved when the couple noticed the python’s tail still partially outside their plantation shutters. The agile reptile had apparently slithered up to the second floor and squeezed through the window openings, with part of its body still hanging outside when discovered, according to reports.
Carpet pythons, while intimidating in size, are non-venomous constrictors common throughout Australia’s coastal regions. They’re known for their climbing abilities and adaptability to urban environments.
Snake catcher Kurt Whyte wasn’t surprised by the incident. He notes that python encounters have increased recently due to a perfect storm of factors: breeding season, unusually hot weather, and continued urban expansion into natural habitats. “They have got to find places to live, and our backyards are offering the perfect habitat,” Whyte stated.
For Queenslanders, such encounters, while rare in bedrooms, aren’t unheard of. The state’s subtropical climate and abundant wildlife mean humans and reptiles frequently cross paths — though typically not quite so intimately as in Bloor’s case.
As for Bloor, she’ll likely be double-checking those plantation shutters before bedtime from now on. After all, few things can replace the adrenaline rush of morning coffee quite like finding an 8-foot python using your chest as a warming rock.
