Penguin swims 5,000 miles every year for a reunion with the man who saved its life

Here is the most heartwarming story of the day!

Back in 2011, retired bricklayer and part-time fisherman, Joao Pereira de Souza, found this tiny penguin on a local beach just outside of Rio de Janeiro.

The little guy was lying on the rocks, covered in oil, and on the verge of death. He cleaned off the penguin and fed him a daily diet of fish to revive him.

He eventually named the penguin Dindim. About a week later, he tried to release the penguin back into the ocean… but the silly bird wouldn’t go.

“He stayed with me for 11 more months, and then just after he changed his coat with new feathers, he disappeared,” Joao said.

Just a few short months later, Dindim returned. He spotted the fisherman on the beach one day and followed him back to his home.

Ever since, for over five years, Dindim has spent 8 months out of the year with Joao and is thought to spend the rest of his time breeding of the coast of Chile or Argentina.

Every year, this little penguin swims nearly 5,000 miles to be reunited with the man who saved his life long ago.

“I love the penguin like it’s my own child and I believe the penguin loves me,” Joao told Globo TV. “No one else is allowed to touch him. He pecks them if they do. He lays on my lap, lets me give him showers, allows me to feed him sardines and to pick him up.”

Watch the entire video about their story below!

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