If you finish the battle before the Chocobo runs off.... congratulations, you just caught your first Chocobo! Here are the controls for riding one:
D-Pad/Left analog-Moving on the world map
Circle button-mounting/dismounting the Chocobo
X button-Boarding the Highwind with a Chocobo
Just a friendly reminder: If you don't have a stable rented, the Chocobo will high-tail it home when dismounted.

Breeding the Chocobo's

NAME	LV
Wonderful Chocobo	"This...is a wonderful Chocobo!"
Great Chocobo	"This is a great Chocobo."
Good Chocobo	"Mmm, this seems like a good Chocobo."
Fair Chocobo	"Mmm, this one's not bad."
AVERAGE CHOCOBO	"This is a pretty average Chocobo."
Mediocre Chocobo	"This Chocobo is so-so."
Poor Chocobo	"This one doen't seem to be very good."
Weak Chocobo	"I really can't recommend this one."

Finding the right Chocobo

There are several areas where Chocobo's run wild, and it's not just the grassy areas either. You can find them around the southern jungles of Mideel, wher0e it .is hot and humid. You can also find them in the extreme north by Icicle Inn. The harsher the climate, the stronger the Chocobo will be. Chocobo's are also only seen with certain types of enemies. This is the key to finding the right Chocobo. Below is a list of the Chocobo's areas, types roaming there, and the enemies they roam with.

Junon Chocobo/Enemy combo Chocobo type 2 Cappawire (FRONT VIEW) Poor Chocobo 2 Nerosuferoth Poor Chocobo 3 Cappawire Fair Chocobo 2 Cappawire (Side view) Fair Chocobo	Wutai Chocobo/Enemy combo Chocobo type 3 Tail Vault Average Chocobo 2 Tail Vault (Front view) Average Chocobo 2 Tail Vault (Side View) Fair Chocobo 3 Razor Weed >Fair Chocobo
Gold Saucer Chocobo/Enemy combo Chocobo type Harpy Average Chocobo 2 Flapbeats Average Chocobo 2 Spencer Good Chocobo	Chocobo Ranch Chocobo/Enemy combo Chocobo type 2 Mandragora Poor Chocobo Mandragora and Levrikon Poor Chocobo 2 Levrikon Weak Chocobo 2 Elfadunk Weak Chocobo
Rocket Town Chocobo/Enemy combo Chocobo type Velcher Task & Kyuvilduns Mediocre Chocobo 2 Velcher Task Mediocre Chocobo 2 Valron Great Chocobo 2 Kyuvilduns Great Chocobo	Mideel Chocobo/Enemy combo Chocobo type 3 Headhunters Fair Chocobo 2 Headhunters Fair Chocobo Spiral Great Chocobo 2 Spirals Great Chocobo

The first set of Chocobo's you will want is a male and female "Great Chocobo". These are found in the Mideel and Rocket Town areas. You cannot determine the sex of the bird, until you return to the ranch. So to save a bit of time, I would suggest capturing four before returning. This will help speed up the process of finding a male and female Chocobo.
Once you have gotten your Chocobo's it is time to begin preparing for the breeding process. You will want to feed your Chocobo's greens to get their stats to the highest levels. Certain greens raise some stats, while other greens raise different stats. Some greens raise stats faster than others. This is where it can get a bit costly. Greens aren't cheap, and it will take a lot more than just 100 to max a stat out. Where do you get the money you might ask? Here is my trick. If you played the entire game with all your characters having the Restore-All combination, you should have at least 3 mastered All Materia. When they are mastered, you can sell them for 1,400,000 Gil each. This gives you a total of 4,200,000 Gil to work with. This should be enough to get you almost all the way through the breeding process. When deciding which green to buy, you should consider which green raises the most stats. Below is a table showing the different greens, their cost, and the stats they raise.

Chocobo Ranch Greens

Green	Price	+ Speed	+ Intellect	+ Stamina
Gysahl	100	Yes	No	Yes
Kraka	250	No	Yes	No
Tantal	400	Yes	Yes	Yes
Pahsana	800	No	Yes	No
Curiel	1000	Yes	No	Yes
Mimett	1500	Yes	No	Yes

Of course the Chocobo Ranch is not the only place you can buy greens.........

Chocobo Sage

The Chocobo Sage is found in a small shack between Icicle Inn, and the forgotten City. Inside the shack, you will notice the Green Chocobo in the stable. Speak to the Chocobo and it will cough up an Enemy Skill Materia.
When you speak to the Sage, ask about his green Chocobo. He will then begin the process of breeding different types of Chocobo's. This, however, will take forever, since his memory is more than fuzzy. You will need to visit him about every 1/2 an hour, to get the entire scoop. Also, every time he gives you new information, return to the ranch and tell Choco-Cole. She will jot everything down for you.
The Chocobo Sage also sells two types of greens. Though they raise the birds stats a lot faster than the ones at the ranch, they are far more expensive to get. They are:

Green	Price	+ Speed	+ Intellect	+ Stamina
Reagan	3000	No	Yes	Yes
Sylkis	5000	Yes	No	Yes

Let the races begin!

When your Chocobo's stats are maxed out, it is time to hit the Gold Saucer for some racing. When you get to the Racing Forum, speak to Ester (The one who spoke to Dio about your prison release earlier) and she will register your Chocobo. Your Chocobo will always begin in the C Class. It is up to you to get them past the other three classes.
(All information on racing can be found in the Gold Saucer section)

Your goal is to get the male and female into at least S Class standings. When this is done, it is time to mate them. You will then need to find a special nut to give them. It is called a Carob Nut, and sorry it is not for sale anywhere (though it is a prize you can get in the battle arena for points). These are stolen from enemies called Valkorados. This red dino-looking beast can be found in the Bone Village area. When you have your Nut to use...SAVE!!! and then speak to Billy. Select mating, and choose your birds. Use the Carob nut, and with any luck you will have a Mountain (Green) or River (Blue) Chocobo. When you get your new one, you will also want to feed and race it to S Class. You will also need to spend about 1/2 an hour running around the world, before the Chocobo's can be mated for the other you are missing. (This holds true for all mating, and you must be out in the world. Towns, and Gold Saucer do not count) When you have both Green and Blue Chocobo's in S Class, with their stats maxed, it is time for the Mountain/River (Black) Chocobo.

To get the Black Chocobo, you will need to mate the Green and Blue Chocobo's with the Carob Nut. You should get the Black Chocobo no matter what color gets chosen first. Though you might not. This is why you are saving all the time right?. When you get your Black Chocobo your next step is...you guessed it...feeding and racing it.
When you are ready to get the ultimate Chocobo, you will need to go out hunting one more time. This time you need to capture a "Wonderful Chocobo" found in the Icicle Inn area. You will then need to feed and race it as well. Make sure that your Wonderful Chocobo is the opposite sex from your Black Chocobo.
This time you will need a different nut for breeding. North of the ranch is a small island with a bit of Forest in it. This is the Goblin Island. You will need to steal a Zeo Nut form the Goblins living there. This is the only place in the world where these can be gotten. (you might want to get teh Goblin Punch Enemy Skill while you are there)
When you have your nut, return to the ranch and speak to Billy. When it is time to choose the Chocobo's for mating, make sure to pick the Black one first. (I have tested this over and over, and have yet to get a Gold Chocobo when I chose the other first) Feed them the Zeo Nut, and prepare for the best Chocobo in the game....

THE GOLD CHOCOBO!!!

Congratulations, you finally made it through the long, costly process of breeding Chocobo's. I bet you are wondering what the pay off is right? Trust me you are not going to be disappointed.
Mountain Chocobo- With this Chocobo, you can get the Mime Materia from the Wutai Materia Cave. You can also go to the Ancient Forest. (If you have not already defeated Ultimate WEAPON that is)
River Chocobo-You can get the HP<-->MP Materia from the Materia Cave by Mt. Coral.
Mountain/River Chocobo-You can get the Quadra-Magic Matera from the Materia Cave east of Mideel.
Ocean Chocobo- In the extreme northeast of the world map, there is a small island surrounded by mountains. Your Ocean Chocobo is the only way to get to this Materia Cave. Here you will find the Knights of the Round Materia. This is simply the best Materia in the entire game!

Chocobuckle Enemy Skill

Getting the Chocobuckle Enemy Skill is a bit tricky. You first need to learn the Level 4 Suicide from either Mu's or Trickplays. Mu's are found around the ranch, while Trickplays are located around Bone Village. You will also need either Mimment, or Sylkis Greens. Then you will need to find a level 16 Chocobo. Before you go scouring the world looking for one, I will tell you they can only be found around the Chocobo Ranch. Level 16 Chocobo's are found with 2 Levrikons ONLY. If they are with any other type of enemy, even one Levrikon, they are not level 16. Here is what you need to do:
1-Feed it one of the greens
2-Have the person waiting to learn the Chocobuckle Skill, hit it with Level 4 Suicide.
This will cause the Chocobo to use the skill and flee. To save time, you should ahve the one learning the skill equipped with all the Enemy Skill Materia equipped on the left most side of their weapon and armor. (Placement is shown where the X's WHERE THE MATERIA are). This enables getting the Skill on several Materia at once.
X=X O=O
X=O

That about sums it up for the Chocobo's in Final Fantasy VII. Hopefully you will find everything you are looking for in this guide. On the right is a quick reference on breeding the Chocobo's. Do not give up, or get frustrated if things go wrong. Breeding isn't the easiest thing to do, and is very time consuming. Just remember the big pay-offs when you are finished!