This is the moment a pensioner went to the bathroom and found a monitor lizard laying on the shelves.

Kimkhun Likitwattanaset, 81, had been sitting in his living room saying Buddhist prayers this morning (March 21) when he heard noises coming from the toilet at his home in Samut Songkhram, Thailand.

The great-grandfather walked inside and was stunned when he saw the 5ft long reptile lounging on the plastic shelves next to the shower.

Toiletries were even strewn across the floor from where the lizard had been rummaging around climbing over the furniture.

Kimkhun called the emergency services and rescuers from the Sawang Baynjatam foundation arrived and quickly captured the monitor.

The pensioner said: ''I was meditating when I heard noises coming from the bathroom. I didn't know what it was and when I went to look, there was a monitor lizard clinging to the wall like a gecko.

''Yes, it was a big surprise. It had caused a lot of mess and there were a lot of things on the floor. I closed the door and waited for the volunteer service to come and catch it.''

Rescuers caught the monitor lizard and dragged it outside before hauling it into a van to be driven away and released into the wild.