Kim Kardashian Clears Up Controversial Cat Photo

Mon, 19 April 2010 21:46:33 ET

'Rest assured, the owner and vet were on set and showed me how to pick him up,' the reality star defends herself through her blog for holding a black kitty by the scruff of its neck.

Generating buzz over a recent photo of her holding up a black kitty, Kim Kardashian has come in defense of her action. Through her official blog, the star of "Keeping Up with the Kardashians" assured worried fans that she wasn't causing any harm to the kitten when she held it up by the scruff of its neck.

"So yesterday I was doing a photo shoot with an adorable black kitty cat and I Twitpic'd this picture," the 29-year-old wrote. "I have been getting negative comments regarding the way I was holding the kitty, but rest assured, the owner and vet were on set and showed me how to pick him up. The cat was not harmed in any way and is perfectly fine! I love animals and would never do anything to harm any animals."

Kim first put up the controversial photo, which saw her wearing long leather black gloves and a cleavage-bearing top, through her Twitter account on Sunday, April 18. In an accompanying message, she wrote, "Pic from my shoot yesterday...good kitty cat!" The picture soon drew negative responses from her Twitter fans.

PETA later weighed in on her action by releasing a statement. "Kim Kardashian isn't the only person who mistakenly thinks that because a mother cat picks up her kittens by the scruff of the neck that a supportive hand under the rump isn't needed," the animal rights group said.

The Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals L.A. chimed in saying, "It is permissible to hold a kitten by his or her scruff for a brief amount of time." Though so, the organization warned, "the manner in which Ms. Kardashian is holding the kitten could lead others to mishandle animals."

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