"I think he was expecting to have Cornflakes for breakfast -- not Cornsnakes!" Hetherington quipped. "The poor chap was absolutely terrified -- I think it was the last thing he expected to find in his kitchen!"
The snake was safely removed from the man's dishwasher and taken to a specialist center, the officer said.
The cereal-stowaway serpent was identified as a corn snake, a species native to North America but common in Britain as an exotic pet.
The RSPCA said the snake is suspected to be a runaway pet and officials are trying to find its owners.
"Corn snakes are one of the most commonly-kept exotic pets -- and they are particularly good at escaping!" said Nicola White, RSPCA senior scientific officer in wildlife.
