Mystery of 11 Missing Dogs Solved!

A snake ate 'em:

Ali Yusof, 35, who had lost 11 dogs in the past three months, found the python coiled at the edge of a swampy area near his orchard at Kampung Pogoh here.

He ran to inform other villagers. "I was shocked to see such a huge python," he said.

It took six men and three hours to capture the 70kg snake (154 lbs.) which measured 7.1 metres in length (about 22 feet) and 60cm in diameter (about 24 inches). They tied it to a tree.

Ali said he had four dogs to guard his orchard, but for the past three months the canines had disappeared one after another, and he had to replace them. He suspected his guard dogs were being eaten by a beast after he found footprints of the dogs disappearing into a swampy area.

"But I did not expect it to be a python," he said.

Ali and the villagers contacted the Wildlife and National Parks Department in Segamat and the officers collected the python yesterday.