HER intricate batik pattern fascinates onlookers and when she slithers, her slender body of 220kg stretches to seven metres long.
Her name is Cik Kiah, a female python belonging to Mohd Redzuan Abdullah Zawawi, 36, who prides himself on owning what he claims is the largest pet python in Asia.
Cik Kiah, of the Malayopython reticulatus or reticulated python species, has become an attraction for the locals in Balik Pulau, Penang.
“I have rented a house for all the six pythons under my care to live, ” Mohd Redzuan told Bernama during a visit to his snake house.
The father of two claimed that a python is a tame reptile which is easy to manage.
“I was asked to hold a snake show before but I could not do so because I do not have a licence for performing, ” said the former civil servant, who has a permit from the Wildlife and National Parks Department to keep snakes as pets.
Mohd Redzuan, who hails from Kota Baru, Kelantan, said he found Cik Kiah as a snakelet on a road heading towards Teluk Bahang 16 years ago.
“I decided to keep the baby snake as my pet. Cik Kiah was small then, about the size of two or three of my fingers. She is my first pet snake, ” he said.
Mohd Redzuan says his son, 12, shares his passion for snakes.
He spends RM700 to RM800 monthly to feed his pythons.
“Cik Kiah eats about 20 to 25 chickens per month, ” he added. — Bernama
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