AT a family barbecue, hungry dog Poppy thought she had discovered the best bone to munch.

But the four-month old's eyes really were too big for her belly and the tiny puppy somehow managed to swallow a whole spare rib almost a foot long.

The pedigree Lhasa Apso's worried owner Samantha Snelgrove, 32, of Bettws, rushed her to Summerhill veterinary surgery in Newport, where shocked vets X-rayed Poppy to find the curved bone taking up almost the entire length of her body.

Veterinary nurse Natalie Morgan said: "We were all amazed by what we saw. Poppy seemed okay and wasn't in any pain, but the X-ray showed this huge bone inside her.

"It was almost the same size as her. She is only about a foot long, and the bone was just a couple of inches shorter than that. I can't imagine how she managed to swallow it whole."

The bone was later removed in a 90-minute operation carried out by practice owner Jamie Allen.

Natalie Morgan said: "It was a straightforward procedure but not a very common one. I don't think we've removed anything this big before." Poppy is doing well after the operation. She is expected to make a full recovery and will go home later this week.

The incident happened on Tuesday at a barbecue in Newport. The dog grabbed a spare rib from the barbecue and ran off with it.

Ms Snelgrove said: "It all happened so quickly. She knew she shouldn't have had it, but before I could get it off her, she swallowed it."

As her frantic owners and other guests tried to stop her taking the bone, Poppy gripped on to it with her teeth and refused to let go.

Hiding in a corner she began chewing, and before she could be stopped, had swallowed the huge rib in one gulp.

Natalie Morgan said: "It's a common misconception that dogs eat bones, but that's not the case.

"Dogs should really not be given bones at all because they are not safe. Poppy was very lucky. She could easily have choked.

"We would like to warn owners to be careful what they feed their animals, and to take care at parties and barbecues in the summer months, just to keep an eye on their pets."