Walking down the road and seeing a man dressed as a medieval archer with a duck on his shoulder might seem abnormally out of place in most high streets.

But in one Kent town, it is quite the norm. Mark Colyer and his birds, Dog and Goldie, can often be seen parading around Rochester’s historic castle and pubs bringing a smile to all who see them.

The 58-year-old, who lives on a boat at Gillingham Marina, spends every waking moment of his day with his beloved ducks, even watching TV with them and grabbing a pint with the pair at his local.

Mark, who is a gardener at the Medway marina, said: “Four-and-a-half years ago, I put some eggs in the incubator, and 12 hatched.

“But only one of them began to follow me everywhere, just like a little dog, hence his name Dog.

“I decided to pet it and look after it and take it back to my boat and we've been together ever since. We even go camping.

“He is just like a normal dog, he follows me around all day long.

“Dog loves camping, loves meeting and greeting people and if you get a camera out his little head poses. He knows what he's doing.”

The former Royal Navy tug worker is also a medieval reenactor with the Mediaeval Siege Society and often dresses up as an archer during reenactments of the War of The Roses – a series of civil wars fought over the English throne in the 15th century.

He said: “I like to take my ducks along with me to meet and greet people.

“During the battle reenactment, Dog has to stay in a cage but after the battle, we meet and greet people.

“He's such a friendly duck, he sits on my hand or just walks beside me enjoying the attention.

“Next year we're getting a lot of bookings and people say 'Oh, can you bring the duck to this event?'.

“And just because I don't want to let anyone down I hatched another duck more recently, so I've got two ducks to take along with me now instead of the one.”

Mark has 15 ducks in total, which includes his newest addition to the flock, Goldie, who hatched after he incubated an egg he bought from the Grange Road farm shop in Rainham.

He said: “The other ducks I have are just pets but Dog and Goldie are friends.

“Ducks are very hard work. They can be very messy animals, but they are very affectionate like most animals.

“If you put a lot of love into them then you get a lot back.

“I take Dog back to my boat most evenings and we like watching Count Duckula together – we've watched all the episodes – and then some nights I do take Goldie back as well.

“At nighttime, they go into the dog cage in the wheelhouse where they sleep, then in the morning, we have a little cuddle and I have a cup of coffee before we walk all the way back to my workshop.

“They walk beside me, it's lovely.”

Gillingham Marina, where Mark’s boat is moored, pays him an allowance every month for food and bedding for the ducks, which often swim and live around the site, and swans, which have recently had a cygnet, that also come and go to the area.

Speaking of his adventures with Dog and Goldie Mark continued: “The ducks and I go up the Waterfront Bar, along Pier Road, for a beer together.

“Everyone knows the ducks and they just love them and have their photographs taken with them.

“The City Wall and the Queen Charlotte [in Rochester] also make us feel very, very welcome as well.

“After the reenactment events Dog will stay with us all evening, standing beside me while I have a beer.

“The ducks are very intelligent. Dog has got a few little things that make me laugh, like his mannerisms and his quirkiness.

“My mum and all my family know about my birds, I'm the mad duck man.

“Everyone knows me as a mad duck man but it's just lovely when people meet and greet them, the smiles on their faces.”

Dog allows Mark to plonk him on his shoulder and carry him around like a parrot.

Mark takes Dog and Goldie out around Rochester most days and always stops to let people give them a stroke or take a picture.

He added: “Most people when they stroke Goldie or Dog they go 'wow. I've never touched a duck before. It's so soft’ and seeing the smile on their faces is good.

“Dog first came to a reenactment when he was 17 days old, just a little duckling.

“We had a big event at Leeds Castle and they said that when they asked people what the best thing they'd seen at the event most of the feedback was for the archer with the duckling.

“They told me it was the highest-ever recorded response for one thing.

“Dog and I were at an event at Michelham Priory House & Gardens in Sussex this year, and we met a girl 12 or 14 years old who is blind from birth.

"She was feeling Dog all over and my eyes were streaming with tears, I was choked up. I couldn't talk to her.

"She was telling me about how Dog's every individual feather felt on his body, his legs, his feet.

"They are like therapy ducks. A lot of people, for a few moments, feel all their pressures and stresses are just gone when they stroke Dog and Goldie because they're just so interested in how the duck feels and I can see the smile on their faces.

"My quest in life is to make people smile. The ducks and I bring out the best in people."

Mark isn’t the only person in Kent with a love for poultry.

James Cosgrove, from Canterbury, who called himself “daddy goose”, takes daily strolls with his pet goose, Phoenix.

In Upchurch, chicken lover Katriona Shovlin enjoys the birds' company so much that she started a hen hotel boarding business.

And in Maidstone, one man goes everywhere with his turkey, Trouble Version 2. From Tesco to the pub, Dave Brooker’s pet is often seen around the town sitting in his owner’s passenger seat causing quite a stir on social media.

Do you have an unusually strong bond with an unconventional pet? Get in touch by emailing your name, number, and some photos to news@thekmgroup.co.uk.