A snake called Millie did what comes naturally when she saw a bolt-hole and decided to go hunting.

The six-year-old Mexican black king snake, which lives off a diet of rodents, must have thought supper was waiting when she found a hole in the lounge floor at the home of her new owners in Oxford, and slithered off to take a quick shufti.

But her sense of adventure led to a three-hour rescue by firefighters, who had to cut through floorboards and bash their way into a cavity wall at the house in Bassett Road, Barton, to retrieve the roving reptile. Cathy and her precious Mexican black king snake

The alarm was raised by carpenter Dennis King, whose younger daughter, Cathy, 16, bought the snake from Yarnton Nurseries two weeks ago.

Dennis's care assistant wife, Carly, elder daughter, Charlotte, 21, and son, Craig, 18, have mixed emotions about the jet black, four-foot newcomer. But he gamely hung on to Millie's tail until the fire brigade arrived.

Cathy, who also has a pet bearded dragon lizard called Freddie, said: "We always let her out of her tank for an hour or so for exercise, and she usually goes to sleep or curls around the furniture. But on this occasion, she disappeared under the television and was last seen going into the floor.

"We had a vet here during the rescue, and they were going to sedate her to get her out, as you can't force a snake backwards for fear of dislocating its back, but unfortunately we couldn't get to her head."