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A mum from Wales has been left heartbroken after her beloved dog died due to what she believes was an issue with a bone from Home Bargains.
Helen Williams, 57, decided to treat her Bichon Frise dog, Milo, to a 99p ham bone from the budget shop on 14 May, and gave it to him to enjoy that night.
The mum said Milo 'never finished' the bone, but he 'chewed it a bit on and off'.
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When she could see that all the flavour had gone from it, Helen decided to take the bone off Milo, explaining: "We didn't let it get all the way down."
However, the next morning Helen and her family noticed something was 'off' with the dog.
She explained: "My husband took him for a walk before work and he suddenly started vomiting bile on the floor, like he was trying to be sick.
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"He was trying to go to the toilet and nothing was coming out. We thought he had a blockage."
Concerned, Helen took Milo to the vet, where he lay 'lifeless' in her arms.
The vets conducted an X-ray and realised that fractures of the bone had ruptured Milo's intestines, causing the dog to bleed.
Helen continued: "They said that they were taking him to the hospital to recover, but in a matter of an hour I had a phone call saying he had passed away.
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"It was really difficult. I couldn't understand. Sunday night, when we took the bone off him, he was great. He was running around, playing with his toys, he was normal.
"But as soon as we got up on Monday morning, it all went pear-shaped. I couldn't believe he was gone so quickly. It was just such a shock."
Admitting she 'wouldn't expect that from a bone [she] bought from a reputable shop', Helen is now trying to warn others about buying similar things for their pets.
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"I won't be buying dog bones from Home Bargains anymore," she said. "When I go there and see people looking at these bones, I open my mouth and say, 'don't buy them - they aren't safe'. [Just] don't buy these bones for your pet."
After hearing of Helen's loss, a spokesperson for Home Bargains said: "As a company, we take our product safety obligations extremely seriously and are very concerned to learn of any reported injury.
"We have checked our records and are unable to locate any communications, using the available information, regarding this incident and we would encourage the customer to contact our customer service team at their earliest convenience so the product can be identified and investigations can be undertaken.
"We can appreciate this has been a distressing time for the customer and their family and would like to work with the customer to complete investigations into this incident."
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Following Milo's death, the family are planning to hold a memorial service for the pooch.
To help prevent any injury caused by bones, dog experts recommend that owners check their dog bones for the presence of small pores or chalkiness, as this suggests that the bone may splinter easily.
They advise owners to only choose bones that are an appropriate size for their dog, and that they should be sure to supervise their pet as they chew on it.
Tyla has contacted Home Bargains for further comment.
Emily Brown