Ian Jenkins was conducting a daily feeding at Snakes Downunder Park in Childers, Queensland on 4 January when his four-metre crocodile, Macca, spotted the opportunity to feed on something a bit more appetising: his owner’s hand.
While the 58-year-old Australian crocodile handler lost a thumb and received a large wound to the head in the attack, he has no hard feelings toward the croc. Instead he blames himself for his carelessness and error of judgment.
Jenkins had taken his eye off Macca for a second, miscalculated his speed and was dragged into the pond by his left hand. He was taken to Bundaberg hospital in a stable condition and was transferred to Brisbane hospital for plastic surgery.
“I’m fairly annoyed with myself,” Jenkins told the media from his Brisbane hospital bed.
“No look, he’s a good crocodile. He’s not aggressive at all, he’s a bit of a character. I’ve got a few other names for him at the moment, but he’s a bit of a character.”
He continued: “It could’ve been an awful lot worse – he might not have let go. I think he only let go because the thumb came off.”
Jenkins’ fellow crocodile handler, Lousie Smith managed to strike Macca on the head with a stick, saving Jenkins’ life, according to the ABC.
“He was coming in to finish me off I think by the sound of it,” said Jenkins. The whack to the head gave Jenkins enough time to get away.
Reflecting on the experience, Jenkins said that he initially wanted to “give the whole job away”, but he has since decided to “get back on the horse”. He plans to look into changing the crocodile’s feeding procedures.
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