Having a pet crocodile in the back yard sounds like an exaggerated Australian fairy tale - like riding a kangaroo to school or having a carnivorous version of a koala.
But in Australia's Northern Territory (ST), it's a reality.
Trevor Sullivan has 11 reptiles that share his tropical home in Bachelor, about an hour's drive from Darwin.
Among them is Big Jack, named after the Jack in the Box toy for its worrying tendency to pop up.
Despite his stunts, this huge raptor is adored, joining the Sullivan household on the same day his daughter was born 22 years ago.
"He's been part of our family ever since...my daughter calls him brother."
On the property of 80 acres, there is also Cricket, still a small creature, and Chess, which - at the completely different end of the scale - is more than a century old and an animal that has lived its life.
"He probably lived through two world wars and maybe federation in Australia [1901. year]," Sullivan says of the 4,7-foot-long beast.
He claims that Shah once killed a man, was used for scientific research, was nearly poisoned to death in a bird park, and lost half of his lower jaw on a crocodile farm and in Queensland - all before moving in with Sullivan a few years ago.
The 60-year-old lights up every time he talks to the BBC about crocodiles: "There's nothing like them... crocodiles are the Harley Davidson of pets."
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But as the strange region goes to the polls on Saturday, the right to keep a crocodile as a pet has turned into a somewhat unexpected election issue - one that actually suits life in the Territory very well.
The cost of living, housing and crime are primary issues for many voters, but Sullivan is one of many left heartbroken after the ruling Labor Party launched an initiative to ban crocodiles as pets.
It is one of the last places in the country where this practice is allowed, but the government claims it is concerned about the welfare of both humans and reptiles.
The opposition in the form of the Rural Liberal Party, however, vowed to support the practice and promised to review the "hasty" decision if elected.
About 250.000 people call the Northern Territory home, but relatively few of them are crocodile owners.
The Cabinet of the Minister of the Environment announced that they could not announce the real number because the government is in a transition period until the elections, but previous estimates came to a figure of around a hundred license holders.
Many of the captive crocodiles have been raised since hatching, while others have been found a new home from farms or after causing trouble in the wild.
Regulations have long dictated strict conditions regarding where and under what conditions these animals can be kept.
For example, newly hatched creatures can live in urban areas only until they are 60 centimeters long - usually around a year - after which they must be surrendered to the authorities or moved to a property outside the city limits.
Under these rules, however, owners were not required to have any special training or knowledge in keeping these animals.
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Tom Hayes says crocodile ownership - or "rescue" - is part of the Territory's appeal, and one of the factors that drew his young family to the Darwin region, from Queensland, earlier this year.
The 40-year-old grew up traveling to the Northern Territory with his father, fishing on the Meri River alongside giant crocodiles, instilling in him a love of these predators and, ultimately, the dream of owning his own one day.
"I'm not just some guy out there who wants a crocodile for a weekend barbecue with his mates," the tattoo artist and self-proclaimed conservationist tells the BBC.
"I wanted to have a place where I could bring these old poor people and where they could live to their heart's content - happy, fed... So that they didn't have to worry about people shooting them."
He was in the process of adopting a mega crocodile when the government of this Australian region announced that it would no longer issue new permits to keep reptiles as pets.
Hayes was left inconsolable, and the crocodile he had hoped to adopt was in danger of being put to sleep.
Northern Territory Environment Minister Kate Worden said the decision was made "following public consultation" and "taking into account the personal safety and welfare of the animals themselves".
Existing permits will remain valid, but no transfer permits will be issued.
"Let's not forget that they are at the very top of the chain of predators and are probably not among the most well-behaved in captivity," Worden told reporters, adding that there have been cases of crocodiles attacking owners in the region.
The new rules bring the Northern Territory into line with all other states and territories in Australia - except, oddly enough, Victoria, which is far from a comfortable climate for the saltwater crocodile.
Animal rights activists, who pushed for this change, say it's a major victory.
Although perhaps some people who keep crocodiles "have good intentions", no wild animal's needs can be fully met in captivity, claims Olivia Charlton, from World Animal Protection.
"There is no way to reconstruct the space and freedom that these crocodiles would have in the wild, especially considering that they live up to 70 years," she said.
The RSPCA's Charles Gilliam said the dangerous nature of crocodiles also made it extremely difficult for authorities to regulate the program and ensure the reptiles had an acceptable standard of living and medical care.
"I know only one veterinarian who is willing to work with crocodiles," he stated as an example.
But crocodile owners say they had no idea this change was coming and are worried about what could happen to their pets.
"I don't mean that you spend many nights on the couch, watching TV and cuddling with his four-and-a-half-foot crocodile ... but there's still an emotional connection between you," Hayes says.
They accuse the government of covering up the change in the wider Crocodile Management Plan to avoid proper consultation on the issue.
Opposition environment spokeswoman Jo Hersey said "The Rural Liberal Party supports the rights of Territorians to keep crocodiles as pets under the current licensing system" and promised the party would review the rules if elected.
Both Hayes and Sullivan say there is broad support for calls for more training and education for permit holders.
But they say these reptiles are surprisingly easy to care for and reject arguments that keeping them as pets is harmful.
"In nature, they have a piece of territory and then they have to fight for it to keep it.
"They're forever hunting for food, forever chasing away enemies or trying to meet their girlfriend's needs, and they have a pretty hard life," says Sullivan.
"In captivity, if they have a good enclosure, enough water, sun and some shade, and they get food regularly, they just love it.
"I have a river running through my property and I actually have wild crocodiles constantly trying to come in and join my party."
The decision to end the practice came at a particularly bad time for Sullivan.
He put his home and menagerie up for sale last year so he could join his partner in New Zealand.
"It's a bit like a Willy Wonka story for you - I want some young kids, with the right ideas, to take over a property full of wild animals."
But that left him with a puzzle that practically belongs in math textbooks: if you have 80 acres of land and 11 crocodiles on the market, but no transfer permit, what is the solution to that question?
"There is no way" they will allow the crocodile to be euthanized, he says.
"I'll have to stay in possession until I die or something changes."
He is pinning all his hopes on the election of a government with the CLP, adding that he thinks it is an issue that will motivate voters.
But Hayes, on the other hand, hopes that's not the case.
There are more important issues at stake that should sway votes, he explains, and he is optimistic that both parties will come to their senses.
"Whoever comes to power will have to deal with it... This is a direct attack on the way of life in the Territory."
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