Snake dragged along Bradford street before being rescued

The python is recovering after being treated by a vet, according to the RSPCA

A 3ft (1m)-long snake has been rescued after it was seen being dragged along a street in West Yorkshire.

The python was found in Bradford on Sunday, with tests by a vet later revealing it had also swallowed bleach.

A man caught on CCTV dragging the reptile along the road before abandoning it is now being sought.

RSPCA inspector Demi Hodby said: "This python was in good condition, so I suspect he was a pet which the owner decided they'd had enough of."

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Ms Hodby said she wanted to find out why the snake - a ball python, otherwise known as a royal python - came to be in Longlands Street, just outside Bradford city centre, and how it had ingested the bleach.

"A member of the public saw the snake on a nearby wall so I collected it from the scene and could smell bleach," she said.

"I think someone has poured this on or near him and a vet later said he had ingested some. Fortunately he was not badly injured."

Ms Hodby added that it was not clear if the man caught on camera was the person who had abandoned the snake, or if he had just found it in the street and decided to drag it along.

"I just can't understand why anyone would dump this poor snake like this. For it then to be roughly dragged along like that is just awful," she said.

The animal charity warned that non-native reptiles like the python need to be kept in a warm environment to survive.