The British bog roll brand Andrex has been forced to deny rumours that it is planning to kill off the iconic Labrador puppy mascot.

Toilet paper lovers on its mailing list reacted furiously after receiving an email which appeared to suggest the puppy was going to be flushed from promotional material.

They took to Andrex's Facebook page to vent spleen, but were quickly told that they had misinterpreted the brand's plans.

One dog lover wrote: "I got an email telling me you had changed your name to omit the puppy. You do know a puppy is for life?

"Please don't take the puppy off of the packaging," another Facebooker begged. "I just love the puppy. It makes the Andrex packaging so much nicer seeing that cute puppy on the front.....and Andrex toilet rolls sooooo 'puppy soft'. Won't be the same without that adorable puppy anymore."

Rather than killing off the Puppy, Andrex told dog lovers, it was merely altering the name of its Facebook page from "Andrex Puppy" to "Andrex".

"Don't worry," an Andrex spokesperson said. "Our content and packaging will remain the same. The puppy is here to stay.

The Andrex Puppy Facebook page has always served as something of a lighting rod for people who are overly preoccupied with their posterior, even before the puppy faced the chop.

"Please ask your masters to change the design of the quilted toilet paper back to 4 ply," one tender-bottomed customer wrote a few months ago. "I would tell them myself but I got an error when trying to submit the contact form on their website."

"Is your Shea butter Toilet paper safe to use and passed the necessary health and safety checks?" another asked. "I've not used it before but the thought of wiping up with paper covered in butter is a bit off-putting, yet intriguing." ®