Texas Toddler and His Duck Best Friend Are Adorable Partners in Crime
— -- Meet adorable toddler, Tyler Young, and his duck best friend and partner in crime, Beaker.
In the small town of Magnolia, Texas, the duo is better known as "Mr. T and Bee," Tyler's mother, Jennifer Young, told ABC News today.
Young, 31, said that her 19-month-old son Tyler and Bee "are always together" and that "where one goes, so does the other."
The bond between the two was instant, and the two hit it off as soon as Bee was taken home as an indoor pet during March of last year, Young said. Bee was actually the latest addition to their household of now 11 ducks, she explained.
"My husband was out buying food at Tractor Supply one day for our other 10 ducks," Young said. "He saw Bee and his little poof and decided to take him home, knowing I always wanted an indoor duck."
The moment that young duckling Bee came home, "he went directly to my son's side," the mother said. "Bee sat in his lap and next to him while he was on the ground. He climbed on his shoulders, snuggled under his neck, and never wanted to be far away."
Tyler, who was only 9 months old at the time, "was too little to understand what was happening but he'd always smile and watch Bee," Young said.
Ten months later, the two are closer than ever.
Tyler and Bee play outside together, eat together and watch TV together, Young said.
"When I try to get Tyler to nap on the couch, Bee is at our feet lying down as well," she said. "He supervises bath time and never fails to let us know when Tyler is awake in the mornings or from his naps."
When Bee hears Tyler on the monitor in his room, "he will pace, quack and worry" until someone attends to Tyler, Young said, adding that the "protective" duck "has to know where he is at all times!"
The mother said that since Bee is a flock animal, she knew the duck would likely form a strong bond with Tyler, but the two "have something special" that surpassed her expectations.
"It's chaos most of the time, but I wouldn't trade either of them for anything," she said.
