Coastguard teams from West Bay and Lyme Regis were called to Golden Cap this afternoon (Sunday) to reports a dog had gone over the cliff.

They were called just before 9am and the West Bay team was called as a 'technical' rescue would be required.

A spokesman for Lyme Regis Coastguard said: "The team took the coastguard vehicle as close to the top of the highest point of England's south coast as they could. The team then carried the cliff rescue equipment the remaining distance.

"On arrival at the scene, the dog owner advised the officer in charge of the location of where the dog was thought to have gone over the cliff.

"Fortunately, as the rescue equipment was being set up for the abseil, the dog returned to the cliff top by itself.

"With the dog safe and back with its owner, both teams repackaged their equipment and returned to base.

"We would like to thank the dog owner, who quickly called the coastguard rather than trying to rescue the dog himself. We are often called to carry out rescues where the owner has tried to recover the dog and got into difficulty themselves. This makes the rescue more difficult, and potentially endangers more people.

"Never attempt to rescue a dog over a cliff. Even better, keep your dog on a lead near any cliff edges."