Stowmarket: The Suffolk duck that thinks he’s a dog

A Stowmarket family have been looking after injured and young ducks for about five years. Angel, a white duck was the first duck they rescued and he is now part of the family. Left to right, Sophia, Dawn (mum) and Eden Rednall (Image: Archant)

Angel the duck is no any ordinary bird - in fact he apparently thinks he is a dog.

The five-year-old was found by the Rednall family deserted by his mother and alone.

He was fed and nurtured but unlike the dozens of other ducks the Stowmarket-based family has rescued he refused to accept he was not a pet just like the cats and dogs he soon grew friendly with.

Now he even travels on family outings in the car.

Dawn Rednall and her three children, Sophia, Eden and Thomas have reared about 100 rescue ducks over the past five years.

“Angel was right at the bottom of our driveway, he was very stressed and he was running around calling out, he had lost his way,” Miss Rednall said.

“We waited to see if his mother would come but she did not. He was going to be a meal for one of crows if we did not do something. We brought him back and he was the first duck we had so we had to learn quickly. Ducks need lots of attention and need to be looked after when they are young; it’s very hard work.

“He is very intelligent, I do not know if it’s because he has been with us since he was little. He goes into the car when we go to my dad’s for Sunday lunch. He jumps out and runs to the front door and he jumps over the threshold and greets my dad. He is a real character and has no fear of humans.”

Along with the four ducks the Rednalls look after they have two dogs, four cats, a parakeet and a rabbit.

Angel is so familiar with humans he recently visited 14-year-old’s Eden school so students could learn more about the bird.