Kate and Rio Ferdinand splash out £40,000 on two highly-trained protection dogs for their home

Kate and Rio Ferdinand splash out £40,000 on two highly-trained protection dogs for their home after spate of footballer burglaries

Kate and Rio Ferdinand have splashed out £40,000 on a pair of highly-trained dogs to protect their home.

The celebrity couple, who are expecting their first baby together this year, want extra security at their mansion for their growing family.

The footballer, 41, and the former TOWIE star, 29, enlisted the help of a special protection dog company, Chaperone K9, to buy the pair of black German shepherds.

Secure: Kate and Rio Ferdinand have splashed out £40,000 on a pair of highly-trained dogs to protect their home

An insider told The Sun: ‘One is already at their home, and the second will be joining shortly.

‘The couple already have a dog – Kate’s chihuahua – but Rio will enjoy walking these pair a lot more!

‘They are incredible family dogs and will protect them like nothing else – everyone has one these days and who can blame them after everything that’s happened with the other footballers. Rio is taking no chances!’

New protection: They enlisted the help of a special protection dog company, Chaperone K9, to buy the pair of black German shepherds

New protection: They enlisted the help of a special protection dog company, Chaperone K9, to buy the pair of black German shepherds

Proud new owner: The footballer enlisted the help of company Chaperone K9 and posed with one of his new dogs alongside Kate's chihuahua

Proud new owner: The footballer enlisted the help of company Chaperone K9 and posed with one of his new dogs alongside Kate’s chihuahua

It comes after a number of high-profile burglaries at footballers’ homes, with Dele Alli and Fabinho among those targeted recently.

Chaperone K9 shared a snap of the new protection dogs on their Instagram, tagging Kate and Rio in the post before they edited it.

They also previously posted a photo of Rio posing with one of the dogs’s alongside Kate’s chihuahua. 

Their website states: ‘We are renowned for supplying trained dogs to the very highest quality that offer both security and love to their new families in an often unpredictable society. 

Helping the stars: The company has worked with a number of celebrities including Stormzy

Helping the stars: The company has worked with a number of celebrities including Stormzy 

Man's best friend: Raheem Sterling also bought a protection dog after a number of footballers were targeted in burglaries

Man’s best friend: Raheem Sterling also bought a protection dog after a number of footballers were targeted in burglaries

‘We have truly bridged the gap between security dogs and family pets. 

‘We run a specialist in house training programme for a minimum of six months with a dedicated team of eight staff who expose the dogs to as many different experiences and environments so that they are fully prepared for all eventualities.’ 

Among their other celebrity clients are footballers Raheem Sterling, Marcus Rashford and Stormzy.  

It comes after Kate revealed exercising has helped her feel like her normal self during her pregnancy in a candid post shared earlier this week.

The Essex beauty posted a snap of herself lifting weights onto her Instagram stories as she detailed her journey.

She wrote: ‘Hey guys, had so many messages about me working out so thought I would give you a little update… 

‘I know I’ve been a bit slack on here recently, I’ve been enjoying phone free time. I know I say this all the time, but it is quite mental for me.

‘I’ve found especially whilst being pregnant the gym helps me to feel like ‘me’ as much as I can.

‘Being pregnant for the first time there is a lot of unknowns so it’s nice to have some form of consistency where possible.’

Radiant: The bikini-clad media personality looked every inch the yummy mummy as she documented her trip on social media last month

Radiant: The bikini-clad media personality looked every inch the yummy mummy as she documented her trip on social media last month

The star added details about her routine as she told her followers how she maintains her enviable figure.

She said: ‘Still getting through my workouts, approx three times a week and a lot less intense.

‘I’ve been really listening to my body and if I feel like I need to rest and take it easy I do.’ 

'There is a lot of unknowns': Kate recently revealed exercising has helped her feel like her normal self

‘There is a lot of unknowns’: Kate recently revealed exercising has helped her feel like her normal self