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This guy cuddles with the same shark every time he goes diving, and the pic is unbelievably terrifying

This guy cuddles with the same shark every time he goes diving, and the pic is unbelievably terrifying
This guy cuddles with the same shark every time he goes diving, and the pic is unbelievably terrifying

Before we begin, let’s get one thing straight: Sharks are the last animals we’d want to snuggle up to. They’re massive sea predators who generally scare the bejeezus out of us. However, we have nothing but complete respect and admiration for this diver who cuddles with the same shark, and has been doing so for the past seven years.

If someone posted an ad reading “kitten snugglers wanted,” we’d say sign us up right away. But since not even a cage could keep a shark from trying to make a meal out of us, we’ll gladly sit back from a safe distance on land, and allow this most unexpected friendship between man and sea beast to proceed without judgment.

After all, Rick Anderson is a professional who runs his own dive school, and animals are pretty irresistible, so we can kind of understand him developing a connection with a female Port Jackson shark — kind of.

But honestly this still scares us a little:

As Anderson explained to The Dodo:

“I started playing with her about seven years ago when she was just a pup about 6 inches long.” He added, “I approached her carefully so as not to spook her, then began to gently pat her. Once she got used to me, I would cradle her in my hand and talk soothingly to her through my regulator.”

But that was only the beginning of Anderson and the shark’s relationship:

“Over the following seasons, she’d recognize me and would swim up to me for a pat and cuddle. She soon got used to me — to the point where she will swim up to me when I’m going past, and tap me on the legs until I hold my arms out for her to lay on for a cuddle.”

“Most divers seeing this for the first time can’t believe it,” Anderson added. “I don’t feed her or any of the other sharks I play with — I basically treat them like I would a dog.”

Um, yeah. This is extremely cute, but we think we’ll stick to cuddling furry, four-legged creatures who don’t have fins and an appetite for blood.