SEVEN-YEAR-OLD Maisie Holden had the shock of her life when she found a snake peeping out of a wall.

The corn snake, which measures about three foot, was found as Maisie and her family walked back to Belthorn after visiting friends in Guide.

After finding the snake, dad Terry Holden put it in a box and took it to the Dog Inn, Belthorn Road, to see if anybody knew who it belonged to.

Maisie spotted the snake at 8pm on Friday coming out of the wall in Belthorn Road.

“Maisie pointed at what she thought was a piece of rope coming out of the wall and said how much it looked like a snake,” said Terry, of Prospect Terrace.

“It was when we got closed we realised it actually was a snake.

“I had had a few beers so had a bit of dutch courage to pick it up.

"I didn’t want to take it to the house so I took it to the pub and they put it in a box.”

The snake is now residing in a hat in a box at the pub with landlady Christine Hodgkiss who believes the snake is hibernating after being out in the cold.

She said: “We are trying to contact its owner at the moment, who we think lives in Guide.

“Apparently snakes can hibernate for up to four months, so we are hoping that this is what has happened.

"If we can’t get in touch with the owner we’re going to get a snake expert or the RSPCA to come and have a look at it.

“A couple of the locals who touched it said they think they saw its head move and that it feels a lot warmer , so we’re hoping it’s OK.

“It is a beautiful little thing, the locals all wanted a look, but we made sure we looked after it as well.”

Matt Derry, a supervisor at Blackburn pet store Aqua Mania, said: “Corn snakes are quite tough and you would be surprised how much they can survive.”