Pepper, who lives in Billingham with her owner Carol Hunter, had to be operated on before Christmas after vets found a small soft ball in her stomach following an X-ray.
Carol said her two-year-old canine first took ill after a trip to the beach in Seaton Carew, where she believes Pepper swallowed a ball after mistaking it for a toy.
It wasn’t until an X-ray at Clifton Lodge Veterinary Group in Hartlepool that the object was found in her stomach and identified as taprogge ball.
Pepper’s X-ray (Image: CLIFTON LODGE)
The small balls are used at the nearby Hartlepool Power Station to clean its cooling system and are understood to be naturally biodegradable in seawater.
They are meant to be captured at the end of the cleaning process but sometimes can escape to the sea.
EDF, which runs the plant, said it takes environmental obligations “very seriously” and when it is made aware of balls washed ashore its teams “collect any that we can find”.
A taprogge ball in Saltburn
A spokesperson said they work with other local partners to “ensure that any recovered balls are suitably disposed of.”
The balls have previously been spotted several times across beaches in the region – but Carol was unfamiliar with them, and wants to raise awareness so other dog owners.
She told The Northern Echo: “We didn’t see her pick it up. All the balls she has at home are bright yellow and blue.
Pepper (Image: CONTRIBUTOR)
“She must have picked it up and carried it round in her mouth – it’s probably about ownership.
“She will have picked up the ball thinking it’s a toy and she’s swallowed it.”
Pepper left ‘panting and retching’
Pepper’s symptoms started with an “odd cough” and several rounds of vomiting – however, Carol said she didn’t think too much of it to begin with.
To be safe, she took Pepper to the vet: “The first time the vets couldn’t find anything and couldn’t feel anything in her tummy.
The ball after it was taken out Pepper’s stomach (Image: CLIFTON LODGE)
“They gave her an anti-sickness injection which worked for a day but then she was really ill.”
Carol said Pepper – who is mostly a German Hunting Terrier but is a mixture of many different breeds – went downhill quickly, and started retching every five minutes through the night.
“She was sat up, panting, retching, and restless”, Carol explained.
As soon as the vets opened the next morning, she took her back and they carried out an x-ray.
That’s when they found out she had swallowed a ball: “If it had gone into her intestines, she would have probably been a goner. She was whipped into surgery.”
Vets had to carry out a gastrotomy, which is when teams had to incise into the stomach to remove the object. Pepper was placed under general anaesthetic for the operation.
“The ball was still in her stomach and it hadn’t had a chance to travel further down, which was lucky for Pepper. She’s a very lucky dog,” Carol, who is in her early 50s, said.
‘I don’t think it is right’
The taprogge balls are usually collected, recycled, and reused.
However, every now and again, some can escape, with several reports over the years detailing how unsuspecting members of the public would stumble upon them on beaches across Teesside.
Hartlepool Power Station (Image: Hartlepool Power Station)
Thankfully, Pepper is now feeling better and on the road to recovery, and is enjoying spending time at home with Carol’s other pooch Pickle.
The Billingham woman has since teamed up with the vets to raise awareness of the balls, saying they told her it wasn’t the first time they had come across the small objects.
She continued: “EDF claims that they don’t pose any risks. Clearly, they do. They say they are biodegradable but only after two years.
“If something is on the beach for two years then they pose a risk for two years!
“Clearly dogs and pet owners have the vets to go to but there is a lot of marine wildlife that won’t have the same care. I don’t think it is right.
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“I kept the ball and it’s on the windowsill. It sat in stomach acid for a week and it is still in one piece!”
A full statement from EDF said: “We take our environmental obligations very seriously and when we are made aware that balls have washed ashore our teams carry out beach walks to collect any that we can find.
“We have discussed the issue with the Environment Agency and work with partners like local authorities, the Tees Valley Wildlife Trust, as well as beach cleaning groups and litter pickers, to ensure that any recovered balls are suitably disposed of.”