An adorable young girl is melting hearts on social media thanks to her adorable – and somewhat unusual – friendship with a chicken named Tikka.

Five-year-old Myammi lives with mum Justine Savage, 46, and brother Danny, 21, in Burton-on-Trent in Staffordshire.

Support worker Justine, who is also mum to 28-year-old Jordan, first took in two chickens, named Sage and Onion, when her sons were young.

But a few months into lockdown last year, a friend asked if the mum would consider fostering another chicken: Tikka.

Justine welcomed her to the family without hesitation but was baffled when she noticed Tikka preferred to stay inside with Myammi, rather than hang out with her fellow feathered friends in the garden.

The plucky bird has since forged an incredibly strong bond with the little girl and the pair now do everything together – from eating breakfast to playing on "assault courses".

They go for walks too, with Tikka perched on Myammi's shoulders or running behind her.

And social media users can't get enough of their unlikely friendship.

"When we first picked Tikka up from her previous owner, I noticed she was much smaller than my other chickens, and so I decided to make a bed for her under our tortoise table," Justine told Jam Press.

"That was that – and she's been a house chicken ever since."

"Myammi took to Tikka straight away. I think it’s because Tikka is the size of a chicken that's just a few months old, although she is just over a year old.

"They love doing everything together.

"Myammi will pull all the cushions off the sofa and do assault courses with Tikka.

"She'll tap on the floor and Tikka will come running over – Tikka will run to the door if Myammi goes anywhere, and will just sit and wait for her to come back.

"She'll also share her meals with her and take for her walks, either with her on her shoulder or running behind her.

"Tikka will also let Myammi push her around in her doll's pram."

In fact, the chicken is so comfortable with her friend that she even lays eggs on top of her.

The mum said: "Sometimes Tikka will sit and do Myammi's homework with her, and there’s also been a few times where she has been so comfortable with Myammi that she’s laid eggs on her.

"She’s even followed her upstairs to the bathroom on a number of occasions."

The chicken has become such a big part of the family that she's even toilet-trained.

Justine said: "We open the kitchen door in the morning and she goes out to do her toileting, then comes running back in as soon as Myammi's breakfast goes on the table."

And Tikka's favourite dish? Spaghetti.

Justine said: "There have been times where I’ve had to dish Tikka up a plate of spaghetti when Myammi has spaghetti bolognese.

"Tikka does love her spaghetti, I think she thinks they are worms."

The dynamic duo also play games together on the young girl's tablet, with the chicken pecking and tapping at the screen.

But there's one spot where Tikka isn't allowed: the bed.

Justine added: "I do, however, refuse to let her sleep in bed with her, although Myammi has asked on many occasions."

The mum recently shared a photo of the duo on Facebook, where the post has since racked up over 1,100 likes and over 2,100 comments.

"Adorable!" one person wrote.

"That's awesome, are chickens good pets to have?" asked someone else.

Other Facebook users revealed the hilarious names they've given their own chickens.

"We have a chicken called Cluck Norris," one person said.

"My five-year-old boy has got two chickens, Batwoman and Catwoman," another user added.

"We had chickens called Nugget and Mother clucker," wrote someone else.

Tikka isn't the only animal in the family's home.

There are also four tortoises called George, Barry Burger, James and Bob; as well as a cat called Baby and a rabbit called Lilly.

Then there's Cleo the cockatoo and the three other chickens who don't live in the house – Sage, Onion and Stuffing.

Incredibly, the chicken gets along well with all of the family's pets and they can often be found roaming around the house together.

The mum has been left overwhelmed by the response to her post and still hasn't managed to read through all of the comments.

She added: "Tikka has made everyone that comes through our door smile.

"Some friends have a phobia of things that fly and panic, but after a few weeks of stretching out to stroke Tikka, they’ve been able to pick her up.

"She has been amazing, she calms all the kids down – everyone loves a cuddle and she doesn’t seem to mind."