- Rather than trying to tame wild stallions, fearless Costa
Rican fisherman Chito prefers a playful wrestle in the water with his best
pal Pocho - a deadly 17ft crocodile.
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- The 52-year-old daredevil draws gasps of amazement from
onlookers by wading chest-deep into the water, then whistling for his 980lb
buddy - and giving him an affectionate hug.
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- Chito made friends with the croc after finding him with
a gunshot wound on the banks of the Central American state's Parismina
river 20 years ago. He had been shot in the left eye by a cattle farmer
and was close to death. But Chito enlisted the help of several pals to
load the massive reptile into his boat.
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- He says: "When I found Pocho in the river he was
dying, so I brought him into my house.
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- "He was very skinny, weighing only around 150 lb.
I gave him chicken and fish and medicine for six months to help him recover.
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- "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.
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- "It meant a lot of sacrifice. I had to be there
every day. I love all animals - especially ones that have suffered."
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- It took years before Chito felt that Pocho had bonded
with him enough to get closer to the animal.
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- He says: "After a decade I started to work with
him.
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- At first it was slow, slow. I played with him a bit,
slowly doing more.
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- "Then I found out that when I called his name he
would come over to me."
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- At one point during his recovery, Chito left the croc
in a lake near his house. But as he turned to walk away, to his amazement
Pocho got out of the water and began to follow him home.
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- Chito recalls, "That convinced me the crocodile
could be tame." But when he first fearlessly waded into the water
with the giant reptile his family was so horrified they couldn't bear to
watch. So instead, he took to splashing around with Pocho when they were
asleep.
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- Four years ago, Chito showed some of his tricks to friends,
including getting the animal to close his eyes on command, and they convinced
him to go public with a show.
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- Now he swims and plays with Pocho as well as feeding
him at the lake near his home in the lowland tropical town of Sarapiqui
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- The odd couple have now become a major tourist attraction,
with several tour operators, including Crocodile Adventures, taking visitors
on touring cruises to see the pair.
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- On the Crocodile Adventures website it describes the
spectacle as: "One of the most amazing things that no cruise ship
passenger will want to miss, the adventure show between the man and the
crocodile."
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