Exes Who Bought Dog Together Are Still 'Co-Parenting' Years After Break Up

A couple whose relationship ended four years ago still see each other on a regular basis after agreeing to co-parent the dog they once shared.

Six years ago, Liberty from Yorkshire and her then-partner decided to take the next step in their relationship: they got a dog.

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Bleu the Pomeranian husky hadn't had the easiest of times as a puppy living in her native Ireland.

"She was the runt of the litter due to having a slight overbite, meaning I can see her smiley gnashers which I love," Liberty told Newsweek.

Her life changed for the better the day Liberty and her then-girlfriend adopted her and moved her over to live with them in England. Now she's living her best possible life doing all of her favorite things.

"We love long walks, beach trips and cozy movie nights cuddled on the sofa," Liberty said. It's not always been plain sailing though.

Just two years after Bleu was adopted, Liberty and her now-ex partner decided to separate. It was largely amicable but there was just one problem.

"Neither of us wanted to not be with Bleu," Liberty explained. "She is our world and it wasn't fair for one of us to take custody over the other."

The bond between dog and owner is often a strong one. So much so, in fact, one study published in the journal PLoS One concluded the relationship between dog and owner is not dissimilar to that of parent and child.

In a series of experiments, researchers were able to demonstrate how the relationship between dog and owner had the same "secure base effect" of that seen between a young child and their parent. Simply put, having them nearby provided a secure base to interact with the rest of their environment.

As part of the study, a group of dogs were tasked with manipulating dog toys in three specific conditions: when their owner was absent, when they were silent and when they were encouraging. A food reward was on offer in any instance they were successful.

Researchers quickly found the dogs were less eager to work for food when their human companion was absent. When they encouraged them or remained silent it also had little influence.

However, if their owner was replaced by a stranger, they not only barely interacted with them but barely tried to get the food. This change hinted at the possible role having an owner nearby had on a dog's overall confidence.

It's entirely conceivable to think Bleu might have struggled in the absence of one of her two humans. But they weren't about to let that happen and instead struck up an agreement to co-parent Bleu.

"It wasn't easy to begin with," Liberty admits. "We had plenty of teething issues but all of those ironed out soon enough."

Four years on, however, and it appears the ex-couple having found a way to make it work. "I'm a shift worker, so we swap Bleu every four days," Liberty said. "It means that Bleu gets more contact time with both of us as I mostly look after her whilst I'm on my rest days so she's always got company and cuddles on tap."

In fact, having Bleu around has helped Liberty to build bridges with her ex, who she might have otherwise had no reason to keep contact with.

"It's made us form some sort of a civil friendship which the dog benefits from more than anything," Liberty said. "We often will help each other out too if one of us goes away on holiday or has to work late, we've both always got each other to help out so it works really well."

Liberty took to TikTok, posting under the handle apinchoflib, to show how, despite the naysayers, they "make it work" for them and, most importantly, Bleu. "People don't see it as a possibility and I wanted to show that it can be done quite easily if you're both on the same page," she said.

Do you have funny and adorable videos or pictures of your pet you want to share? Send them to life@newsweek.com.