An Australian travel blogger was targeted after he posted a video showing him feeding a shark inches away from his babies.
Riley Whitelum, 37, and Elayna Carausu, 28, brought together more than 764,000 Instagram users who documented their lives as they cruised the world on a luxury yacht with their two young children.
On Sunday, Elayna posted a short video of the couple that shows two-year-old Lenny standing on the edge of the boat while Riley feeds a beating shark that was close enough to crash into the yacht.
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Riley Whitelum, 37, and Elayna Carausu, 28, were targeted after they posted a video showing their two-year-old Lenny feeding a shark.
Most of the comments condemned the “irresponsible” actions of the adventurous couple, which they felt put the child in danger.
One viewer wrote: “I don’t think these videos are worth the risk of letting your family in. I’m afraid this will backfire on you one day. The ‘clicks’ are not worth it.’
‘Not beautiful. Your son looks scared. You don’t get my support for content like this, I don’t follow you anymore,” he said for a second.
A third said, “It’s scary to see a baby this close.”
Elayna posted a short video of the couple that shows two-year-old Lenny standing on the edge of the boat while Riley feeds a beating shark that was close enough to crash into the yacht.
Others feared that hand-feeding the sharks might lead to an attack.
‘Enormous! Now the sharks come to the boats that need to be fed. A poor child lies in the water and is chewed, ”said a woman.
“This is terrible and very irresponsible. You train sharks to associate human interaction with feeding!” the other agreed.
Isn’t that training sharks to attack things falling behind boats? Can you make them more aggressive with swimmers?’ said the third.
The couple has gained a huge online following by documenting their lives around the world on a luxury yacht with their two young children.
There were several onlookers who went on the defensive, praising Lenny for his bravery when he was so close to the predator.
One fan said the brave boy was “not startled” when he saw the shark.
“Little Lenny will be fearless in life, well done,” said another.
“As conscious parents and crazy experiences who have dedicated their entire lives to the ocean, I believe they have the right to teach their children about any element of the ecosystem,” one commenter wrote.
It’s not the first time Elayna and Riley have been criticized for allowing Lenny to interact with the sharks.
In February, they raised eyebrows after they shared a YouTube clip of a two-year-old boy snorkeling at Jaws Beach, surrounded by reef sharks and nurse sharks, in Nassau, the Bahamas capital.
Earlier, they raised eyebrows after sharing a clip of Lenny snorkeling at Jaws Beach in Nassau, the Bahamas capital, surrounded by Caribbean reef sharks and nurse sharks.
“A lot of people think it’s crazy to dive with sharks in the water with a two-year-old, but we trusted Andre. [their instructor] and she is an expert,” Elayna said.
Lenny was told to step lightly into the water instead of leaping, as the leaps would alert surrounding sharks to his presence.
‘Wow, that was great! Too many sharks,” the excited boy said, wearing blue glasses and board shorts.
Lenny was told to gently dive into the water instead of leaping, as the splashes would alert the surrounding sharks of their presence.
Many of the couple’s fans were excited to witness Lenny’s big day at the ocean.
‘I’m so proud of Lenny! Swim with the sharks! Very brave,” one woman wrote.
“I think after this movie you will have a lot of viewers who will question their fears… me too. Calm and cautious courage is how I would describe it,” he said.
The third added: “Fair warning, a woman named Karen will definitely step into your parenting business and call Child Protective Services because they let Lenny swim with sharks. She definitely will.”
Source: Daily Mail
