Gary Grayson is a videographer. His job is to get the best shot and the best footage in any way he can. This job has him going to remarkable places just to give the rest of us a glimpse into other parts of the world.

Moreover, this has Gary receiving many once in a lifetime experiences and encounters while he’s out with his camera.

One of these was a step above the rest, though. It was his 2 minute encounter with an Atlantic Grey Seal

Gary caught the whole encounter on video 5 years ago. He uploaded it to YouTube, and it garnered 15 million views since he posted it. People love big, curious seals, I guess.

“Sea Lions”, “Pinnipeds”, “seals”, “water doggos”. These pudgy, marine-adapted mammals of the order Carnivora are known by plenty of different names. Although there are over 30 species of varying size and shape, they are in fact, all related in one natural, genetic group.

Gary’s interaction with this seal is spectacular to watch. The Atlantic Grey Seal swims up to Gary, and what transpires afterward would be hard to believe without video proof

The seal circles Gary and then begins reaching its flippers out and patting Gary on the arm. Gary is probably trying to guess what this means but quickly finds out what. It was asking for pets and rubs.

It sounds ridiculous, but this 8 foot long, 300-kilogram seal did, in fact, want to be patted and rubbed like a giant dog.

In fact, calling them Waterdogs (or “doggos” if you’re a Gen Z person) isn’t as weird as it sounds.

The huge, natural group that seals belong to, the Carnivora, also encompasses things like cats, bears, dogs and things in between

Undoubtedly, being genetically related means they might not all be that different from each other. Their large snoots and having the signature carnassial and canine teeth are a notable example. However, there is a simpler way to explain Carnivora and its members.

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Carnivora being a huge group of animals means that a bit of taxonomic breakdown is in order. The group can actually be divided into two separate (but related at the base) lineages or suborders. The dog-like Caniformia and the cat-like Feliformia.

Feliform members are – you guessed it- the cats and all the other groups and species that genetically lie closer to cats such as meerkats and hyenas

Conversely, the Caniformia encompasses dogs and other species that genetically lie closer to dogs. This includes bears. So if you always thought that bears just look like weird, oversized dogs then you aren’t crazy. It also includes – you guessed right again – Seals!

Thus, watching this seal inspect Gary and ask for a belly rub doesn’t seem so strange anymore. The water dog likes rubs and pats as much as his land-dwelling kin.

In a scene that you have to see to believe, the Seal repeatedly pats Gary’s hand while receiving the belly rub like it’s commending his belly-rubbing skills

Subsequently, after it’s had its fair share of belly rubs, it lets Gary give it some neck scratches too. Unfortunately, Gary can’t bring it home with him even if he wanted to. He’d need to get paperwork, tetanus shots, and food for it.

You know, besides other reasons

Shortly after the rubs and scratches, Gary’s seal decides it wants to gnaw on his diving gloves. So it playfully bites Gary’s arm for a good few seconds before letting go. When all this ends, Gary and the Seal go their separate ways.

What an encounter! And Gary caught all of it on film. A 300-kilogram seal acting like a giant, aquatic German Shepherd is so remarkably adorable that you’ll need to watch the whole thing for yourself. Play the video down below and think of how lucky Gary was to catch it on film.

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Source: [Gary Grayson/YouTube]