'Fighter' puppy survives a flush down the loo

LONDON: A week-old puppy in Britain had a miraculous escape after its four-year-old owner flushed it down the toilet in a bid to give it a bath.

The cocker spaniel was trapped in a waste pipe for almost four hours after little Daniel Blair decided that it "needed a wash" as it has got dirty playing with his twin brother in the garden.

Horrified mum Alison, 40, feared the worst when she realised what Daniel had done. But she decided to check the drain outside -- and heard the dog whimpering, the Daily Mirror reported today.

She called the firefighters but they were unable to reach the puppy. Alison then then called plumbing specialists Dyno-Rod, who used a special camera to locate it -- lying upside down in a pipe 20 metres away under a neighbour's house.

"I never thought a dog could survive being flushed down the loo. He's a real little fighter," Alison said.

Dyno, who has been named after his rescuers, was doing fine.

Little Daniel has apologised, saying "Nicky got the puppy muddy and I had to give him a wash. I'm so, so sorry. I won't do it again."