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'Pride' Host Didn't Want to Be 'The Next Steve Irwin'

By PopEater Staff Posted Aug 13th 2009 07:22AM

Dave Salmoni has had several brushes with death in his career as a zoologist and lion tamer, but during his 6 months of living in a Namibian nature preserve with a pride of massive lions, there were several times he didn't think he was coming home as fangs and claws raced toward him. Salmoni documented his time there in Animal Planet's 'Into the Pride' (premieres Aug. 13 at 8pm EST) and visited PopEater to talk about his quest ... and also bring in the cutest freaking baby lion EVER.

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Exclusive: There's a Lion In Our Office (!!!)

Dave Salmoni visited the PopEater offices to talk about his new show 'Into the Pride,' and somehow we were able to sneak a baby lion past security. Click to See the Most Adorable Pics We'll Ever Post >>

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On one occasion, Salmoni says he was sitting quietly among a pride of lions when a female signaled to the alpha male (his "buddy") to attack the host. "She told him to go kill me, and he got up, wiped the sleep out of his eyes and looked at me first like we were buddies and then his face changed and he said 'I'm going to kill you."

Salmoni obviously got away and was able to hoot and holler enough to prevent the attack, but he calls it the scariest moment he encountered there. He says he didn't want to become "the next 'Grizzly Man,' the next Steve Irwin," referring to other nature enthusiasts who were ultimately killed by the animals they loved.

"They were the most aggressive lions I've ever seen, and they almost killed me several times. There were times when I didn't think I'd make it out."
Video From Dave Salmoni's PopEater Visit

Salmoni's goal while in Namibia was to break the aggressive streak in "a bunch of rogue lions that had been marked for destruction" in a nature preserve. Salmoni was called in to try to tame the beasts, and he says he was "at the point in my life where I had a television career, but I wasn't sure if I was that animal guy. The bush guy who can go into the wild by himself in a tent in the middle of lion country and live there for six months."

"It was a journey of me trying to teach these lions to begin to trust people again to save their lives," Salmoni told PopEater.

As for his baby lion in tow, Salmoni said you "fall in love with them when they're this cute, and then deal with the issues with them when they're not so cute."

For show clips and more 'Into the Pride' info, visit Animal Planet's Website.

Tags: dave salmoni, DaveSalmoni, into the pride, popeater exclusive

Comments

(7)

Thursday 13 August

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He seems like a great guy and his heart is in the right place, I'm just not sure about his brain. They are called "wild" animals for a reason. He will eventually be killed by a lion, no doubt!

Friday 14 August

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He was trying to save the lions. They were so violent they were going to be killed. He helped them get used to people and now they don't have to be killed. Maybe he will die by lion but that seems to be a worthwhile risk for him. Few people lead such an exciting life!

Thursday 13 August

High Rank Vote down Vote up Report this

Steve Irwin left a loving wife and two precious children. They have grieved and are coping. People need to realized animals are WILD. A lion will eventually kill this man if he does not stop while he is ahead.

Thursday 13 August

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Dave Salmoni is a perfect example of what a human "should" be ... he seems like a great person, and one day there will be a girl lucky enough to have him. I love people who show their love for animals, they have rights too. That is the cutest baby lion, i want to hug him sooo bad.

Thursday 13 August

By SolO Spo0kzZz

Low Ranked Vote down Vote up Report this

Holy Crap i hope this guy gets killed so he eat his words

Thursday 13 August

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I truly hope this young man is careful.

Thursday 13 August

By K

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Enough arrogance. You can't compare to Steve Irwin who had a body of work, a ton of fans, and a household name. Ultimately, you may be just as foolish, but you'd need a personality first.

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