Duck's Best Friend
Sometimes not knowing you’re different can make all the difference in the world. Case in point: the friendship between Sterling the duck and Cleo the dog— a pairing that is off-the-charts in its aww factor.
The unlikely duo is practically inseparable on the Iowa land they call home: They drink water out of the same bowl, snack on dog food together (yep, the duck likes dog food) and they love to just hang out together and snuggle.
“They go everywhere together,” owner Tiffany Smith explained to First Coast News, a station near her home in rural Dexter. “He'll follow her down the road and play with her, and they both like to clean each other.”
Smith, a 17-year-old animal lover, inadvertently played matchmaker when she brought the duck home after she decided she wanted a different kind of pet, something more unique than a cat or dog. She settled on Sterling, a heavyweight, domesticated duck known as a Rouen that is unable to fly. Sterling initially had a partner, but it died about six months ago, which is when the lonely duck sought out Cleo as a pal.
Smith first feared Cleo, a 7-year-old Lab mix, might treat Sterling, now 1, as lunch, but she was tickled to discover they got along like peas and carrots. Now, they nap side-by-side on an almost daily basis and provide each other with one of the most basic of all needs: companionship.
Like the children’s story The Fox and the Hound, Sterling and Cleo never realized they weren’t supposed to be friends — and we hope they never do.
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