Where do you draw the line with pets? A snake? A tarantula? How about a polar bear?
The giant, dangerous creatures definitely aren't your typical pet, but that didn't stop animal trainer Mark Abbot Dumas from forming a bond with one.
Together with his wife Dawn, Mark from Abbotsford, British Columbia (BC), adopted polar bear Agee when she was just eight weeks old and trained her so she could star in TV adverts.
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In general, polar bears are powerful predators who will chase their prey - typically seals - though they're also known to feast on carcasses. Their usual diet might not consist of humans, but I wouldn't want to risk it, would you?
Mark obviously does, as he not only trained the bear, but formed a habit of swimming with it in a swimming pool and wrestling with the 60-stone (800lb) beast in her enclosure.
The trainer was so confident in his relationship with Agee that he literally put his head in between her teeth - and lived to tell the tale.
"If anyone else tried this they would end up as Agee's dinner," Mark said, as he explained that 'the only people in the whole world [Agee] likes are me and my wife'.
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"I have worked with bears in this way for over 40 years, so I can read Agee's body language and know how to behave safely around her. Agee has rules and we are always working inside those," he said.
Agee lived inside Mark and Dawn's home with the couple for the first few weeks after her arrival, but eventually she grew too big to stay inside the home.
The couple moved Agee to her own enclosure, though Mark still made sure to get a lot of one-on-one time with the bear.
"Earlier in the morning she's more playful and relaxed and she lets me roll around with her. We wrestle for fun and sometimes we fall asleep on her grassy lawn together. It's a great way to unwind after a bad day.
"I feel pretty privileged to be able to nap with my head resting on a fully-grown polar bear," Mark said.
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The bond between Mark and Agee is such that Dawn realised the bear 'gets very jealous of other women talking to Mark', explaining: "She's happy with me doing it but if any other women are around she gets very possessive of him."
I guess that's one way to keep your partner all to yourself!
Topics: Animals
Emily Brown