When the two tiny ducklings were caught by the sharp jaws of a larger German shepherd, they must have thought _  But as luck would have it for the frightened wild ducklings that had lost their mother, the dog that helped them out of the bushes had only their best interests at heart. Duke, a one-year-old German shepherd, found the two ducklings hidden in long grass next to his owner's workplace on the edge of the Thronybank Industrial Estate in Dalkeith.     And despite the natural instincts of a hunter, the dog gently took them in its mouth and carried them back to his blanket, putting them down where it was warm and even washing them clean with his tongue. The ducklings will be looked after by staff at the center until they are old enough to be released into the wild. "This dog is a modern day Rin Tin Tin,( The world's most famous German shepherd dog) and to pick them up in his mouth without harming them is quite something. "To them try and wash them is just amazing behavior." said one of the staff. Duke is the   _   of the German shepherd.
name owner friend trainer