A runaway crocodile was caught five days after escaping from a Buddhist temple.<br /><br />The nine-year-old reptile named Thongdam climbed out of his enclosure at the Khok Salut temple in Phitsanulok, central Thailand on March 1.<br /><br />Abbot Pipat Arjankhun was shocked when he went to feed the creature and found it missing. He said that CCTV showed a dog barking at the 7ft long crocodile, which then pushed through a glass viewing window.<br /><br />The monk reported the incident to the authorities, who finally found the animal last Thursday (March 5) after locals noticed it basking next to the Nan River.<br /><br />Abbot Pipat said that the temple had recently improved the enclosure and did not expect the reptile to escape.<br /><br />He said: "We have just reconstructed the crocodile pool with bricks and a glass window for visitors to watch.<br /><br />"It was quite surprise that Thongdum pushed through the glass out and squeezed itself out through the gap."<br /><br />The rescue team spent five days looking for the crocodile before receiving a report that it was around a mile away from the temple.<br /><br />The alligator was frightened and escaped into the water before rescuers rode boats to capture it."<br /><br />The district governor Wattana Suratmanee said the croc will not be back to the temple and will instead be released into a freshwater lake in Phichit province.<br /><br />He said: "We will firstly send it to a freshwater rescue centre for treatment. It is for the well-being of the animal.''
