Dad Louis Phiri bought the phallic six piece stacking ring toy from bargain store TKMaxx for £7.99 as a late Christmas present for his eight-month-old son Tomos.

When taken apart and unpackaged, the plastic centre of the ring toss looks like a more explicit toy.

Louis, 35, told The Sun: “We got it in the sales for our son Tomos and we thought it’d be something he’d love.

“He opened it and as soon as he started to take it apart we saw this piece and were stunned.

“I said ‘oh my god - he can’t have that!

“We took it off him straight away. Then after the initial shock we were really laughing. It was hilarious.

“It looks so realistic. I couldn’t have explained that to my in laws! They would not have approved at all.

“We took it back to TKMax, explained the situation and because we’d not had it long they let us swap it.

“We got a full refund and got another present which thankfully didn’t end up looking like a dildo.”

Louis, a nurse from Hammersmith, west London, said he was impressed with how the store handled the situation.

He added: “There was no way I could let him play with something that looks like a dildo.

“I don’t know if other parents have experienced the same thing but there was no way we could allow it.

“He’s now very happy with his new toyset.

“It’s great and it means there won’t be any awkward moments with my in laws now.

“Maybe when he’s a lot older I’ll be able to explain it to him.”