At its worst an over-indulgent Christmas might result in a touch of indigestion which will be long forgotten by the time the new year rolls around.

But for one unfortunate pooch, the festive season had a far more unsavoury end.

Dexter was over-the-moon when he received a Frisbee from Santa and couldn’t wait to get to grips with it.

However, the one-year-old pup’s gift had soon disappeared without a trace. A few days later the cockerpoo began to vomit tiny bits of green plastic.

“He seemed absolutely fine and he wasn’t being sick too often but after almost two weeks it started to get worse and we realised he needed to be checked by a vet,” said owner Shannon Funnell.

The 19-year-old, of Square Hill Road, Maidstone, took him to Mote Park Veterinary Surgery.

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She added: “At first they weren’t certain what it was. When they realised he’d eaten the whole Frisbee and it had become lodged in his stomach they said there was a small chance he may not survive the operation.”

Plastic does not normally show up on an X-ray but luckily five large pieces had lined up in Dexter’s tummy. Following a brief procedure he is now back at home and appears to have made a full recovery.

A senior vet at the Northumberland Road surgery said though suspicions are raised of similar incidents every day, surgery only takes place on average twice a month.

He added incidents are very hard to avoid: “I have one client who is on 24/7 sock watch because their dog just loves eating socks. He’s had two or three surgeries.

“Another dog once ate a fist-sized amount of lead flashing which sat at the bottom of its stomach for a few months.”

Miss Funnell said Dexter did get some other toys for Christmas which he continues to play with, however she has not bought him a replacement Frisbee and has written to the makers to point out the risks posed to dogs.