When Coral Algie, 52, and husband Wayne, 61, found a little Santa Gertrudis calf all alone, they took him in.
They named him Buddy and cared for him as he was orphaned when his mum got stuck in a dam near their house in New Italy, New South Wales after Australia’s dangerous drought reduced water levels.
But since arriving, Buddy had been taken in by the couple’s two and a half-year-old German shepherd, Bada, who recently gave birth to a new litter of 11 pups.
And the adorable young bull calf, now six weeks old, has already picked up some hilariously canine habits – wagging his tail, playing chase with his pooch pals and snuggling up with the other puppies for a snooze.
Mum-of-four Coral said: ‘We found his mother in the dam. We tried to rescue her but unfortunately, we couldn’t save her.
‘By the time we got her out she was totally exhausted and she passed away.
‘Bada has really taken Buddy on as puppy number 12.’
Coral says that Buddy doesn’t see himself like the other calves on their farm.
She added: ‘I think he sees himself as posher than them.
‘He looks across at them in the paddock but he’s up on the back veranda enjoying all the comfort.
‘He’s very content to hang with the humans and the dogs.’
In the time he has lived with them, Buddy and Bada have developed a close bond.
Coral added: ‘He quite enjoys the grooming Bada gives him. He responds really well to her.
‘She is grooming him all the time, licking him, cleaning his eyes – she is constantly with him.
‘When he is out, she supervises him. She walks with him and chases after him.
‘She is so generous with her time. She has been amazing.’
The adorable calf has also made himself popular with Coral and Wayne’s two younger children, Bella, 12, and Lawson, 10, because he loves to join in their games outdoors.
‘Buddy runs beside the kids when they’re on their bikes outside and he plays chase with Bella,’ Coral said.
‘He is very affectionate to us – he has assimilated very well.’
While Buddy has quickly made himself part of the family, playing with the couple’s children and puppies, they have so far kept the inside of their house out of bounds and he sleeps on the verandah of their farmhouse.
But they have had to quickly adapt to satisfying Buddy’s voracious appetite as the calf guzzles down no less than 10 and a half pints of milk a day.
He now weighs six stone but once fully grown will come in at a a whopping 95 stone on the scales.
But the family insist Buddy is a pet for life and will never be destined for use as meat.
Coral, who runs Von Rhys Kennels, said: ‘I think maybe we shouldn’t encourage chasing, as when he’s 600kg, it might not be such fun.
‘But he will always be our pet bull, that’s for sure – no matter how big he gets.
‘He won’t be destined for the abattoir – he will always be our big buddy.’
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source https://metro.co.uk/2020/02/02/orphaned-calf-thinks-dog-rescued-german-shepherd-family-12169541/
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