In 1989, a five-metre-long crocodile lay badly injured on the bank of a river in Costa Rica, having been shot. A local man named Chito (Gilberto) rescued Pocho, as he named the crocodile, and cared for him for several months until he recovered.
When Pocho regained his strength, Chito took him back to the river to free him. But Pocho didn’t want to be left behind, and followed Chito home. And so Chito cared for Pocho for nearly two decades, with the crocodile living alongside Chito and his family. As their bond grew stronger over the years, Chito and Pocho came to trust each other so completely that they spent hours each day swimming and playing together. Amazingly, Pocho the crocodile was kind and patient with his human companion, even responding to his name when called. Thousands of tourists, scientists, and animal behavior experts came to watch them having fun.
Chito also taught Pocho the crocodile several tricks, such as turning around, lifting his tail and closing one eye. After many years of friendship, Pocho died in 2011 of natural causes. Hundreds of people attended his funeral. Naturally, Chito was devastated by Pocho's death, but he continues to share his friend's story to raise awareness of how special crocodiles can be.
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