A German Shepherd has taken a clutch of abandoned ducklings under his wing and become their ‘very protective’ surrogate dad.

A dog named Ben had recently formed a friendship with an adult bird that left unexpectedly. He may have sensed the relationship between newly-hatched baby ducklings.

Ben and the fledgling brood bonded immediately and now he spends most of his days watching over them as they sleep, eat, play, or have a bath.

He barks even at his family’s tabby cat when it gets too close.

Julie McGuire is a resident of Motueka in New Zealand. She lives near a stream where orchard workers abandoned ducklings after eight hours. The mother duck did not return.

So the 35-year-old woman agreed to care for them in her home until they could survive outdoors on their own.

Julie said that their dog Ben was “extremely curios” and wanted to immediately know what the babies were doing in the cage where they were feeding and napping.

“He’s very protective. He keeps an eye on them, making sure that the cat does not get too near .”

“They deserve the best life and I am just happy we could help some of them survive, and Ben has had fun with them growing up.”

Now that their bigger, Julie lets the ducklings roam free on her property.

“If the decide to take off. I’m happy with that,” she says.

We cannot believe that Ben is the same.

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Watch this SWNS licensed video. (The music changes to natural sound about halfway through. )

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