Aussie Criticized for Holding Son While Feeding Crocodile

Steve Irwin, Australian television’s “Crocodile Hunter,” hand-fed a 13-foot crocodile while holding his infant son, drawing fire from viewers today and the promise of a government investigation.

Before a crowd at his reptile park in Beerwah, north of Brisbane, Irwin on Friday cradled his month-old son, Robert, under one arm and dangled a piece of chicken from the other. The croc quickly snapped up the meat.

Television viewers later jammed phone lines to express outrage, media reports said.

But Irwin defended his actions, saying the child was never in danger.

“I was in complete control of the crocodile,” said Irwin, the Herald Sun reported today. His American wife, Terri, who handed the baby to Irwin in the enclosure and giggled at the spectacle, agreed. “It was a wonderful sensory experience for [Robert]. He dug it,” she said.

Officials from the state’s workplace safety authority said they would investigate, and the families minister asked for tapes of the incident.

Child advocacy and family groups said Irwin’s actions came close to child abuse and that he had exposed his son to peril.

Bill Muehlenberg of the Australian Family Assn. told the Herald Sun: “One slip, one fall, and he is the crocodile’s lunch.”