On Nov. 3, the Australia Zoo shared a video<\/a> \u2014 beginning with a clip of Irwin capturing Old Faithful on The Crocodile Hunter \u2014 announcing that, after the crocodile was deemed a \u201cproblem crocodile<\/a>\u201d in Far North Queensland, he has found a new home in Australia.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s time we respect crocs\u2019 homes and let them thrive undisturbed in their natural habitats,\u201d the zoo wrote in the caption. \u201cAvoiding them is simple, stay out of the water and away from the water\u2019s edge, don\u2019t leave food lying around the banks and you\u2019ll never have a problem with a crocodile.\u201d<\/p>\n The caption continued, \u201cWe couldn\u2019t stand by and let him be sent to a crocodile farm\u2026 so we brought him to Australia Zoo to give the big guy a forever home. We know Steve would be over the moon that we could have him here, in the sanctuary that he built, safe and sound to live out the rest of his days! \ud83e\udd79\u201d<\/p>\n However, Alwyn Lyall, the Rinyirru (Lakefield) Aboriginal Corporation chair, told The Guardian<\/a> that same day that he was \u201cpissed off\u201d to learn that such an \u201cimportant and totemic\u201d animal had been taken so far away from its original owners, who had also expressed they were \u201cvery upset.\u201d<\/p>\n Never miss a story \u2014 sign up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter<\/a> to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer\u200b\u200b, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.<\/p>\n \u201cThis crocodile comes from up here in Cape York. A zoo is the wrong place for that animal,\u201d he told the outlet. \u201cTo remove him over the weekend without [any] notice or notification to us traditional owners, or anything \u2013 it\u2019s like a thief in the night sort of rubbish?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cWe never gave the authority for that to happen,\u201d Lyall continued, noting that there is a much closer facility in Babinda that would be more accessible to the original owners.<\/p>\n Australia Zoo\/Instagram<\/p>\n Steve Irwin and Old Faithful on “The Crocodile Hunter”<\/p>\n To make matters worse, the Environmental Defenders Office \u2013 acting for advocacy group Community Representation of Crocodiles (CROC) had requested a statement of reasons for Old Faithful\u2019s removal back in January.<\/p>\n According to the organization\u2019s co-founder, Amanda French, the department had allegedly requested an extension but then simultaneously \u201cfast-tracked the paperwork and transport logistics.\u201d From her perspective, French expressed that their actions seemed like a \u201ccover-up for mistakes\u201d made in a removal that lacked \u201ctransparency\u201d and \u201ccultural authority.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s incredibly sad that a crocodile that survived decades in the wild \u2014 swimming enormous distances, feeding on whatever he wants, mating with whomever he wants \u2014 is now sentenced to a lifetime in [captivity] \u2026 for tourists\u2019 [amusement],\u201d French told The Guardian, emphasizing that the crocodile has just become \u201ca great commercial opportunity\u201d for the zoo.<\/p>\n PEOPLE reached out to Australia Zoo for comment, but did not immediately hear back.<\/p>\n Read the original article on People<\/a><\/p>\n![\"Australia](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/e64c0a5272a7ea90b564615492d9a1d0.jpeg\"\/)
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