Recalling the 'almost died sort-of-thing' moment, Robert Irwin says in a clip of his family's reality show 'Crikey', 'I've got no idea how he's going to react, and, honestly, that's quite terrifying.'
- Feb 8, 2022
AceShowbiz - Robert Irwin and his family have been dealing with animals all the time, but no one can predict an aggressive crocodile's behavior. The son of the late Steve Irwin was nearly attacked by one of the reptiles in a wild clip from his family's reality show "Crikey! It's the Irwins".
During the filming of the show at the Australia Zoo, Robert was trying to see if the croc was comfortable enough in a new habitat. He attempted to give the leucistic (nearly white) saltwater crocodile named Casper some food to see how the croc would react.
"If he's coming out of the water giving big strikes, that means he's gonna be ready for the Crocoseum show," the 18-year-old explained in the video he posted on Instagram. "Casper has such a wild behavior, and since Dad first got Casper, he's had that instinct. I've got no idea how he's going to react, and, honestly, that's quite terrifying,"
At first, Robert managed to lure Casper out of the water like they wanted. But when Robert threw the food, Casper ignored it and chased Robert instead, prompting him to yell, "Bail, bail, bail" to the rest of the cast and crew filming the frightening scene.
In the caption, Robert wrote, "The finale of 'Crikey! It's the Irwins' is on now, 8pm in the USA so go check it out! We've definitely saved the best for last, including one of the most intense croc feeds I've done!"
"We prioritize natural behaviour with our crocs," he elaborated. "By getting in their enclosures with them, and letting them put on those huge strikes from the water's edge, they get to use all of their predatory instincts and they just love it! Plus we can educate everyone about their conservation. But safety for us is also crucial and you definitely have to know when to call it. And with such a powerful and quick croc like Casper we had no choice but to bail!"
Robert further detailed the scary moment to ET Online. Calling it an "almost died sort-of-thing" moment, he disclosed, "We had a crock, a brand-new crocodile that was actually rescued by my dad and moved into a new enclosure. It was our first time doing a feeding and everything."
He shared, "Long story short, it was the fist time I ever actually had to completely ditch the food run and jump over a fence while there was a croc right at my heels -- a massive, dominant male."
"It was definitely, definitely scary," Robert admitted. "I think it's one of those things when you're feeding a crocodile you'd be silly not to be nervous. For me, it's a really exciting adrenaline rush. For me, crocodiles have been my specialty and what I love to do is to work with these incredible animals because of my dad, he instilled that passion."
The reality TV star continued, "At Australia [Zoo], we work with crocs like nowhere else on the planet and we're able to get in there -- not just chuck a piece of food at them but really replicate their natural behavior. They get to jump out of the water, they get to hunting and striking like they would in the wild. It's great for them mentally and physically."
As for the scary moment, Robert noted, "You work with crocs close enough, you get to see just their change in body demeanor. ...At that moment, you'll notice a croc named Casper, he puts his head down and really plants his feet and starts fully running and it's one of those instances if you don't time it just right and get out of its way... It's such a hectic thing, but it's Dad's mission. It's awesome."
"That's going to entail someone jumping in with Casper, a crocodile in a brand-new environment having no idea how he's going to react. And today, that person is me," he added with a laugh.
"Crikey! It's the Irwins" season finale aired on Animal Planet and Discovery+ over the weekend.
