PHOTO: Kim Kardashian Mishandles Kitten, PETA Is Angry – Riggs Applauds.

I wouldn’t condone this if there was any sort of “abuse”, but come on – she picked up a kitten, probably for a few seconds for her pic, then put the kitten down. Really. Or maybe she threw it down? Who knows? But should there really be a ruckus over this picture? I digress…

Following up her nude Harper’s Bazaar photo shoot with a possibly Catwoman-themed jaunt while in Australia, Kim Kardashian tweeted a new photo Sunday, featuring a whole lotta cleavage and a small kitten being dangled by the scruff of its neck.

PETA was quick to respond, in a statement to X17online: “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.”

But more heated was the reaction from her fans after seeing the image.

Comments on the Twitpic have ranged from complimentary (“u are sooo beautiful!!!” said aleyeli09) to confused (“i hope you was not hurting that poor little kitty. im against animal cruelty,” wrote Yanirislove), to angry (“This is really not a nice picture! Do you only think about yourself? You are a beautiful woman from the outside, but by the looks of this picture I am not very thrilled about the way you treat animals,” said Shootinbeauty).

Kardashian has so far not responded to the criticism over the photo, nor has her sister Khloe, a PETA supporter.