Man And Crocodile, Chito And Pocho, Play And Swim Together Like Best Friends (VIDEO)

Some say that the dog is man's best friend, but in Chito's case, the animal companion is a bit more unconventional: a 980-pound crocodile.

Chito rescued Pocho the crocodile nearly 20 years ago in Costa Rica after finding him on the side of the road with a gunshot wound to the eye. Chito cared for the animal until it was healthy again, but when he tried to release Pocho back into the wild, the croc wouldn't have it. Apparently, Chito's affections won over the massive reptile, as it followed him back home, and has been with him in the two decades since.

Now the two are so comfortable that they play and swim together for tourists, as seen in this video from MSNBC. Although Chito confesses it took many years for him to feel safe fooling around with the dangerous creature, he is now able to roll around in the water with Pocho and have fun, as though the croc were a pet dog.

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Comments

[Steve41]

12:48 PM on 10/04/2010

New headline "Croc plays with its food, hopes it is fattened up soon!"

[caroline gray]

08:27 AM on 10/02/2010

crocodiles and alligators and their cousins are actually also community animals, other female crocs will nurture each other's young. they have tight bonds with sound waves such as bellowings and squeaks. :)

[aligatorhardt]

05:46 AM on 10/02/2010

It is difficult to find signs of emotional attachment in reptiles, but I saw a story about a pet snake that by biting and tugging at it's owner's clothes, awoke a man who's house was on fire and saved the man's life. Wild animals are always dangerous, but who knows what they are thinking. Crocodillians do have symbiotic relationships with some birds and other animals. Instinctive reaction to perceived threats sometimes override friendship. With animals so powerful, even a momentary overreaction can be severely damaging.

[emncaity]

04:36 AM on 10/02/2010

I think we have a new entry for the 2010 edition of "101 Apartments Soon to be Vacant."

[dangermonkey]

05:40 PM on 10/01/2010

Haters gon' hate!

[SusanElizabeth1949]

04:55 PM on 10/01/2010

I have just 3 points to make
1) You can't tame a wild animal
2) You can't Tame a wild animal.
3) You can;t tame a wild animal.

[ivan kovac]

01:33 PM on 10/01/2010

I don't know if they're going to be friends after this crocodile eats this guy!

[Finnlander]

11:00 AM on 10/01/2010

After watching this I was reminded of Steve Irwen, kinda miss that bloak.

[LivelyLexie]

09:26 AM on 10/01/2010

As cute as this is, the truth is that it's a wild animal. Animals revert to instincts. At the risk of sounding harsh, I'm waiting to see a follow-up story about how this man gets killed by his crocodile friend. I hope I'm wrong.

[William Blomberg]

08:14 AM on 10/01/2010

Boy, here's a 911 call ready to happen!

[gip7]

03:22 PM on 10/01/2010

911 ain't no good in Costa Rica.

[Dolphinfan65]

10:08 PM on 09/30/2010

A crocodile is like a snake, when it is threaten or hungry all is fair, when eliminating the threat. He may have train this croc to do what he wants, but I bet he keeps him well fed TOO!. I wonder what happens during mating season. I'd like to see him get into the water then.

[joeyfoto]

09:45 PM on 09/30/2010

I don't know how to break this to you, Chito, but your friend,, Pocho, is a reptile. Although many of us haver made that mistake, that fact puts certain limits on a relationship.

I refer you to a song by the late Oscar Brown Jr. called "The snake," for a more detailed warning...

[Tomas Rahal]

08:34 PM on 09/30/2010

look at the smile on that croc! he knows a good thing when he sees it. aged, well-marbled man

[Dr Scott]

03:24 PM on 09/30/2010

FIrst of all, I think this helps to show that even reptiles are smarter and more emotional than we give them credit.
Second, this seems like one of those activities that, in retrospect, might not have been such a great idea.
But I certainly understand Chito's attitude. It's quite an epiphany when you discover that you understand another living being so different from yourself.

[Ivyleaguequaker]

01:32 PM on 09/30/2010

One day that croc is going to feel hungry.

[Carbon Forteetoo]

03:17 PM on 09/30/2010

One day that guy is going to have a tiny papercut. Then Pocho will say: "It's time to roll!"