A camouflaged canine blends in so well with a family’s living room rug that they keep tripping over him - because he’s impossible to spot when lying on it.
Deb Lythgoe, 34, thought nothing of it when she picked up a plush deep-pile rug in slate grey back in April.
However after only days of it being laid out in the front room of the family home in Wigan, Greater Manchester, her and fiancée Pete Chisnall, 37, realised that they had a problem.
Their poodle Stanley happened to have exactly the same colour fur as the rug and the couple found themselves repeatedly tripping up over their seven-year-old dog as he became invisible whenever he lay on it.
To make matters worse, Stanley decided that the rug was his favourite spot in the house and proceeded to sprawl out there daily.
Deb said: “We bought the rug a few months ago and put it in the front room. Stanley straight away liked it and started lying on it.
“We noticed he matched the colour but we didn’t think anything of it at first. However suddenly we kept finding ourselves tripping up over him.
“That’s when we realised that when he is lay on there you actually can’t see him. Thankfully we’ve not had any serious accidents though.”
Deb took a picture of Stanley lying next to six-month-old Joseph and shared it online saying “not as good as the cigar in the wall but not a bad second, my little man cuddling the dog”.
She was overwhelmed by the reaction.
Deb said: “It made us laugh so we took a picture of it and shared it with my friends. We didn’t really realise just how invisible he is, but everyone who saw it couldn’t believe it.
“It took lots of people ages to realise there was even a dog in the picture. Everyone was amazed by how much he blended in. Everyone loved it.”
The family, who include Kayleigh, 14, Ryan, 11, Ava, eight, and 16-month-old Aeryn, has had Stanley since he was just a couple of months old.
Deb, who has been a full-time mum since having Joseph, said: “Stanley is a really good boy. He is really good with the kids and has a lovely temperament.
“While he keeps finding himself in trouble with the rug, it’s not his fault and it is the only problem he causes – he’s actually very well behaved.”