These dog owners forced their randy pooches to live apart and wear 'contraceptive pants' – but they still managed to sneak a brief encounter and get pregnant. Bex Kane and Martin Clarke were concerned when French Bulldog Lilo went off her food and started being sick in January.
The pair took her to the vet to have her checked out and to rule out anything sinister beyond what they assumed was a tummy bug, but initial scans didn't show anything. After forking out £600 and puzzled vets doing Lilo's blood work, the parents-of-three were told three weeks later that their pet wasn't ill but pregnant.
The content creators were stunned as they'd kept the 18-month-old pooch, who was in heat, away from their other French Bulldog Stitch, also 18 months. In addition, Lilo was wearing her protective season pants - that prevent a dog in heat staining anywhere with blood and are supposed to help prevent any frisky mutts from doing the deed.
But during one ten-minute encounter, when they were both accidentally allowed into the garden at the same time, 'determined' Stitch took his chance and hopped onto Lilo. Having managed to startle the pair apart easily, leading them to believe Stitch hadn't 'locked on', in addition to Lilo wearing the pants Bex, 39, and Martin, 38, believed they'd had a narrow escape.
But a week later Lilo went off her food and started being sick and it was the following month vets confirmed Lilo wasn't ill but experiencing morning sickness. Bex and Martin decided to share the pups' happy news on their social media page with a hilarious pregnancy photoshoot - with Stitch described as looking 'very pleased with himself'.
Lilo gave birth to a litter of six puppies via c-section - welcoming three girls and three boys who have yet to be named. The couple, along with their children Caitlin Clarke, 18, Kacey Clarke, 15, and 17-year-old Mckenzie Clarke, are now taking it in turns looking after the six new additions to their home.
Martin, from Wigan, Greater Manchester, said: "When she started being sick we feared the worst and that she had something seriously up with her. We took her to the vets. They were testing her to see if it was an illness or anything but [couldn't see anything] then they took bloods.
"They invited us back two weeks after that and informed us she was pregnant. She was wearing protected season pants, they're like knickers for dogs. On the description it says it's to stop the bleeding [staining items] but they're supposed to protect her from male dogs as well.
"Lilo was already outside and then one of the kids let Stitch out not realising she was already out. Stitch took advantage of the chance to hop on and do the deed. They were out there together for about 10 minutes.
"My daughter [Kacey] was horrified when she realised what was going on. She shouted for us and we both went flying downstairs and out into the garden. Lilo had her pants on and they weren't locked, so thought it'd been a narrow escape. So when the vets, after paying £600 for visits, tests and scans, told us she was pregnant we were absolutely shocked."
After the couple got over the initial shock, they started to get the home ready for their new arrivals. They even dressed the parents-to-be in smart outfits, alongside a baby scan picture, and a teddy bear dog announcing their big news.
Martin said: "When we found out she was pregnant we were a bit worried it wasn't the time we'd planned for any puppies. Then we were trying to make sure we had everything right in the house so we could look after them.
"We had a holiday booked and we cancelled it. In the photo Stitch looks smug - he looks very pleased with himself.
"We were only expecting two or three puppies, we weren't expecting six. It's easier to have a child than puppies. We aren't getting a full night's sleep. We take shifts through the night as we've got to stay and watch them.
"We've not named them yet, we're going to let our followers help us to decide. They're off to the vets to be 'done' after this - so there'll be no more cheeky hook-ups and surprise pregnancies like this."
