Peckish Python Swallows Barbecue Tongs

An Australian pet python called Winston has had delicate surgery to remove a pair of barbecue tongs it swallowed.

Vets at Adelaide University operated on the woma python because they did not think it would be able to regurgitate the cooking utensil without causing internal injuries.

The outline of the tongs could clearly be seen lodged in the snake's stomach and an x-ray later revealed the item wedged inside it.

The reptilian drama unfolded when Winston's owner, Aaron Rouse, used the tongs to feed a dead rat to his pet, which it then gripped on to.

Unable to free the tongs he left them with the snake only to return later to find Winston had swallowed them whole.

"I was dumbfounded," said Mr Rouse.

The worried owner contacted Dr Oliver Funnell, a veterinary expert at Adelaide University, for advice.

"He said the snake had swallowed some tongs and initially I was imagining some small forceps or tweezers or something like that," Dr Funnell told 891 ABC Adelaide.

"When Aaron arrived, the snake was in a box and I said, 'Are you sure he swallowed the tongs?' and Aaron just laughed because when you opened the box it was obvious what the problem was.

"You could basically see the shape of the tongs, and there's a small clip that you slide forward to lock them and you could actually see the outline of that through the snake. You could even see the bumps on the end of the tongs."

Dr Funnell said: "Snakes do have an ability to regurgitate food if they change their mind, but I was not sure if Winston was going to be able to regurgitate these (tongs) even if he tried.

"These are made out of a pressed metal, the edges are relatively sharp.

"(I decided) endoscopy was probably not a way to go because dragging the tongs out could have caused (internal) damage. The only sensible option was to do surgery."

Dr Funnell added: "With reptiles you have to make an incision between the scales and we just made it over the big end (of the tongs) because that was further away from some of the vital organs like the heart and the lungs.

"The clip was at the other end so these tongs would have been trying to expand the whole time, which would have been quite uncomfortable.

"We were able to remove them quite easily once we got the big end out."

Winston is reported to be making a good recovery.