It is an unlikely combination, a 52-year-old man and a 5-meter, 445kg crocodile, but in the 20 years that it has lasted Pocho has resisted what should come naturally to him and the two have remained close friends.
Chito explains:
Pocho is my best friend. This is a very dangerous routine but we have a good relationship. He will look me in the eye and not attack me. It is too dangerous for anyone else to come in the water. It is only ever the two of us.
It began when Chito found Pocho severely injured by a gunshot wound to the eye on the banks of the Parismina River of Costa Rica, some 20 years ago. He and some friends dragged the wounded reptile onto his boat and took it back to his house where he nursed it through a slow recovery.
According to Chito:
When I found Pocho in the river he was dying, so I brought him into my house. I stayed by Pocho’s side while he was ill, sleeping next to him at night. I just wanted him to feel that somebody loved him, that not all humans are bad. It meant a lot of sacrifice. I had to be there every day. I love all animals – especially ones that have suffered.
Ten years later, Chito felt safe enough to play with Pocho:
After a decade I started to work with him. At first it was slow, slow. I played with him a bit, slowly doing more. Then I found out that when I called his name he would come over to me.
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