If dogs are man's best friend on land, and cats make for a woman's perfect sailing buddy – what makes the ideal companion for a man who's sailing the world?

A hen, that's what.

Meet Monique, the plucky hen sailing the seas with her captain, 24-year-old Frenchman Guirec Soudée.

The SBFFs (that's Sea Bound Friends Forever, obvs) first met in the Canary Islands, when Guirec was looking for some company and a trusty shipmate aboard his nautical adventures.

"I knew she was the one straight away," he told the BBC.

"She was only about four or five months old then, and had never left the Canary Islands. I didn't speak any Spanish and she didn't speak any French, but we got along."

Monique may have fewer knots to her belt, but she's certainly not one to chicken out when the waves get rough.

Since they began their weird and wonderful journey together, the pair have sailed the Caribbean and braved the Arctic seas - and to our joy, they've documented each maritime moment on their Facebook and Instagram pages.

On a wing and a prayer: meet the fearless hen sailing around the world