Spanish bullfighter under fire for bullfighting with baby

Famous bullfighter Francisco Rivera Ordóñez came under fire when he posted a picture on Instagram that shows him holding his baby daughter of only five months while taunting a bull on Jan. 25. “Carmen’s debut, She's the fifth generation of bullfighters in our family,” Rivera wrote in the caption.

The pictures sparked an immediate reaction on social media sites. A lot of netizens criticized him for putting his own daughter's life in danger. Child-protection officials in Andalucía launched an investigation into the fourth-generation bullfighter’s actions, which the welfare agency called “a situation of unnecessary risk for a minor,” according to Agence France-Presse.

Rivera defended that it is a tradition and pride of his family. "My granddad was a bullfighter as well as my dad. My dad did this with me and I've done it with my daughters Cayetana and now with Carmen", he said.

However, Rivera underwent life-saving surgery after a bull gorged him last year. And his father died during a bullfight in 1984.

Spanish-style bullfighting is normally fatal for the bull, but it is also dangerous for the matador. Over the past three centuries 533 notable professional bullfighters died in the ring or from injuries sustained there.