Helping a busy mother of five by baby-sitting the kids while she takes a break sounds like the right thing to do, yes?
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Well, it is in the eyes of a hen who has taken on the responsibility of full-time baby-sitter of five one-month-old kelpie puppies out at Tubbul.
It all began just two weeks after the puppies were born, when their owner Rodney Wiggins discovered the hen perched in their kennel with the pups happily huddled beside her.
“I couldn’t believe it, it’s adorable! It’s like their own little family,” Diane Wiggins said.
“The puppies snuggle with the chook, not their mum.”
A typical day for the hen starts when the puppy’s mother, Maggie, leaves the kennel for a well-earned break.
The hen is quick to jump into action, keeping the puppies entertained, quite undeterred by the yappy youngsters who aren’t afraid to frolic or pull out the odd feather, or two.
“They actually play with the chook.” Diane said.
“One was jumping up on her, biting her cone, and she didn’t care. Chooks would normally run!”
Originally the hen would leave the kennel once Maggie finished her break, but now the feathered fowl appears to have been employed as a live-in nanny, remaining in her new roost when Maggie returns.
The puppies - currently for sale - will stay in the care of their dedicated babysitter and mother until they find a new home.
Check out a video of the unlikely friends on The Young Witness Facebook page.
