Postcode Lottery winner spent cash trying save poorly dog

Anna-Marie Stevens, 51, spent her £13,305 winnings on treatment for the poorly dog after vets told her they were “convinced” it had ingested poison.

Just weeks after Anna and her husband, Nigel, were told they had won the huge sum, their once healthy and energetic dog, Paul, fell ill and deteriorated quickly.

The couple believe, after consulting with vets, that the dog had eaten something poisonous while on a walk in Kismet Park, on Canvey. The dog was just nine months old and they spent all their winnings on treatment before he passed away from kidney failure.

Anna said: “We rushed him to the emergency vet and a few days later. We thought he was okay, he got worse, and we took him to Southend Medivet – they were convinced it was poison.

“It cost £2,500 and we took our other dog to get checked too, we were told the only place we could go to is Southfields in Basildon, that cost £10,000.

“We tried all week to save him but he had chronic kidney failure, we don’t know exactly what he ate, but it caused a lot of damage.

“Vets are convinced it was poison, I don’t want anyone going through the heartache that we went through, I used all my winnings from the postcode lottery, and we lost out dog, he was beautiful.”

Anna said is unclear whether poison had been left intentionally in the park to target dogs, or whether Paul had ingested spoison that could have been left out to target rats.

However, she did raise concern that a allegedly a “number of sandwich bags with dog food in” had been discovered in the park.

Anna, who lives in Gainsborough Avenue, said: “A neighbour who walks dogs and knew my dog, Paul, really well has removed sandwich bags and fear they may have poison.

“Several times at Kismet Park, I have founds sandwich bags containing dog food and you never know what else is in there.

“People who walk down Gainsborough Avenue say people have rat attacks so they might put down poison for the rats.”