Neighbours were urged to not flush their toilets out of fear a dog who had fallen into the sewer might drown.

Owners of black Labrador Ollie were terrified when they returned to their home in Holbury after a quick trip out and couldn’t find their beloved pet.

It wasn’t until they hunted around their back garden that they discovered Ollie three metres underground, having fallen down into the sewers.

The hapless pooch had slipped into the sewers due to a damaged manhole cover.

Firefighters were called to the scene to try and rescue the dog and brought in experts from the RSPCA to assist.

But they warned other residents along the street in Holbury, near Southampton, to not flush their loos as it was feared Ollie could drown.

The other worry was that he’d get increasingly covered in even more poo.

Thankfully they were able to hoist the dog up and rescue him, unharmed.

An RSPCA spokesperson said: “Having popped out for 45 minutes, Ollie’s owners panicked when there was no sign of their beloved pet on their return.

“Something just didn’t smell right. But it wasn’t long before they discovered Ollie who had fallen three metres down into a sewer in their back garden.

“Hampshire Fire and Rescue’s Animal Rescue team, with their expert Jim Green, were first on the scene and they called the RSPCA for assistance.

“Rescuers had to stop any households in the neighbourhood flushing their toilets to help keep Ollie safe, and enable his rescue to take place.”

RSPCA inspector Graham Hammond said: “Ollie had got into a wee bit of trouble when he accidentally broke through a faulty sewer cover while bounding round the back garden of his owners’ home.

“I was really concerned that he could have seriously injured himself. It was a long drop and obviously extremely nasty down there.

“To protect Ollie and to facilitate his rescue, the first priority was to stop any neighbours from flushing their loos.”

He added they needed to keep Ollie as calm as possible during the rescue.

He continued: “A multi handled ground sheet was put under his belly to lift him and throughout, he remained friendly and easy to handle.

“This resulted in a straightforward and easy rescue, though a bit smelly.

“Once Ollie was brought to the surface, I gave him a check over, and luckily he was uninjured though very unsavoury.

“He seemed completely unfazed by his ordeal, although I’m sure he’ll be pooped out later.

“It was a very happy ending but could have been a very different story.”

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