A Cornish vets practice is warning owners not to let their pets play with stones after a rescue dog needed life-saving surgery twice to remove pebbles from her intestines.

Four-year-old Lily of Looe has undergone surgery twice in the past year at Calweton Veterinary Group after swallowing stones from her owner’s garden.

She first underwent surgery a year ago, then disaster struck again last month and Lily’s owner rushed her to Calweton Veterinary Group when her beloved pet became unwell and started vomiting.

An X-ray clearly shows the ingested stone inside Lily's intestines.
An x-ray clearly shows the ingested stone inside Lily's intestines. (Calweton Veterinary Group)

It has prompted a warning from vets at the practice for owners to be vigilant and to try to avoid pets picking up and playing with stones.

Vet Anna King, who performed Lily’s second surgery, said if the stone hadn’t been removed it could have led to sepsis or a ruptured intestine.

Anna said: “Lily had been vomiting and not passing faeces, which are common signs of an obstruction in the intestine caused by a foreign object. On examination, I could feel a hard lump in her abdomen and an X-ray identified an oval mass, similar in size to a small stone.

“Lily needed surgery to remove the stone, but luckily her owner brought her to us quickly, so the procedure was straightforward and she has made a great recovery.

The pebble recovered from Lily's intestines which caused a blockage and potentially could have led to sepsis or a ruptured intestine.
The pebble recovered from Lily's intestines which caused a blockage and potentially could have led to sepsis or a ruptured intestine. (Calweton Veterinary Group)

“Some dogs seem to think stones are interesting to chew or play with, and I would always urge owners to be vigilant and try and avoid their pet picking up stones if possible, or encourage them to drop them straight away if they do pick them up.”

Lily is now back home with her owners in Looe and enjoys spending time sitting alongside her owner in the harbour.

Mrs Bond said: “I couldn’t believe it when we realised Lily had swallowed a stone for a second time. We did have some ornamental stones in our garden but I have now removed every single one to reduce the risk of it happening again.”

Mrs Bond said her family rescued Lily after falling in love with her during a holiday to Mauritius, where the dog had been living as a stray on the beach.

She said: “From the day we arrived on holiday Lily shadowed us, and she would sit by us on the beach and followed us everywhere. When our holiday finished, she ran behind the taxi taking us to the airport and it was heartbreaking. I broke down in tears and knew we had to rescue her.

“As soon as we were home, I got in touch with an organisation called 4 Paws Rescue and Relocation and they found Lily and helped us arrange to fly her to the UK. I used some money I’d inherited to bring Lily home and it was worth every penny.”