1/6/2004

in

Erica Medina

While most six-year-old children are receiving toys for their birthday, Steve Irwin's parents knew their son needed something more than just a toy, so they gave him a scrub python.The son of renowned naturalists, Irwin helped to feed and care for the animals at his family's Queensland Reptile and Fauna Park in Australia. At nine years old, Irwin was catching crocodiles in the rivers of North Queensland.  
  
Steve was able to turn his love for reptiles into a job when he began working for Queensland Government's rogue crocodile relocation program. In 1991, Irwin became the director of Australia Zoo in Queensland, Australia.  
  
After a chance encounter with a television producer, Steve filmed his first documentary, "The Crocodile Hunter." The success of the first one led to many more documentaries. Eventually, Steve took this hit sensation to television, with the shows, "Crocodile Hunter," and "Croc Files."  
  
While Irwin has performed countless stunts with his crocodiles, none has received more public outrage than his recent decision to take his one-month-old son, Robert, into a crocodile pen for a feeding.  
  
On January 2nd, Irwin told his audience at the Australian Zoo, "He's one-month-old, so it's about time Bob got out there and did his first crocodile demo."  
  
With the crowd looking on, Irwin held Robert in one arm, while dangling a dead chicken over the crocodile, who anxiously snapped it up. Irwin then put Robert on the ground, helping him walk over to the crocodile's pond.The television network that aired the program was flooded with phone calls protesting Irwin's actions.  
  
"The phones ran hot, pretty much universally in outrage at what he had done," Seven news producer, Dave Salmon, told Reuters.  
  
Irwin also received a phone call from a representative for child welfare and heassured the representative there would not be a repeat incident.  
  
Irwin spoke out against the criticism, saying he was in complete control of the situation and that he would never put his son's life in danger.  
  
"You are in less control when you strap your kids in a car and take them on the highway," he said.  
  
Irwin claims he took his daughter, Bindi, on her first crocodile demonstration at the same age.Irwin's stunt has been compared to Michael Jackson holding his infant son over the balcony of a Berlin hotel.  
  
After hearing he was being compared to Jackson, Irwin furiously replied with, "Give me a break," he said. "That would just make me vomit." Irwin said he understood that television footage of the incident might have caused distress, but he asked people to understand that his was not "a normal family living with a normal backyard."Irwin has defended himself by saying his father had done the same with him as a child and he was simply carrying on his family tradition and following what his own father had done.  
  
"If you knew how much I loved my kids, well, any parent can tell you about the love they feel for their children, but if you knew how much I love them, then you would know that I would never, ever, put them in any danger. Not in a million years."