MIAMI -- An African Rock Python was captured Tuesday morning after it got stuck in a turkey pen behind a South Miami-Dade County home.

Images: Python vs. Turkey

The incident happened at 147th Avenue and 26th Street.

According to Capt. Al Cruz of the Miami-Dade County anti-venom unit, the python was so fat from feeding that it couldn't get out of the pen.

When authorities tried to remove the python, it vomited the turkey, Capt. Cruz said.

This is the second incident in which pythons have been found in South Florida in the last two days.

"As soon as he threw up, he became very aggressive," said Lt. Charles Seifert, of Miami-Dade Fire Rescue.

"It's not even a Burmese python. This is an African Rock Python. The other one's from Asia; this one's from Africa. It's a completely different animal. They tend to be a little more aggressive and they don't get as large as the Burmese do, but it's still a large constrictor that's not native to this country," Cruz said.

The turkey pen borders thick, overgrown grass that creates a good hideout for snakes.

It has been taken to A.D. Barnes Park, 3401 SW 72nd Ave.

This is not the first time that the venom team has been to the area, which indicates that the snakes might be reproducing in the area, officials said.

"This is not a common snake to find. I have found one other African Rock Python right around this area several years ago. It was about 16 feet long," Cruz said.

Some snake owners dump the snakes because they get too big.

"(Pet owners) find places like these empty woods and they drop it off, and they think it'll be fine feeding on wild cats, so I think we get a few of them out there," Seifert said.

The state of Florida wants to control the ownership of snakes by requiring permits, but the law is not on the books yet.

"Right now, our native animals are under real, real tough competition with these big snakes, like you've seen with the Burmese python with the alligator," said a pet store manager who only identified himself as Spencer.

Some pet store owners will take snakes back if they get too big for their new owners.

"Any snake that gets over 10 feet, if they don't want it, they can always bring it back to us. We'll take them in no matter what. We just don't want pet owners releasing them out in the wild," Spencer said.

Cruz said there are ways to keep snakes away from your back yard.

"The way to keep snakes away is to keep your landscape and surroundings clean, keep rodents away, and you should be fine," Cruz said.

Last month, a 13-foot python blew up as it tried to swallow a 6-foot American alligator in Everglades National Park. Neither animal survived.

On Sunday, a bulging 12-foot Burmese python was captured near the backyard of a Miami Gardens home. A snake expert said the python had eaten the homeowner's year-old Siamese cat, named Frances.

"The moral of the story," Cruz said, is that pythons "are eating more than they can chew."