Los Angeles, Jun 8 (IANS): TV personality Farrah Abraham has been slammed by People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) over taking a photograph with a lion cub.

Abraham took to Twitter on Wednesday, to share a photograph of her holding a lion cub. She captioned it: "My Lion Cub doesn't let anyone mess with me WatchOut #Cat4help."

However, PETA argues that the cubs are being exploited for tourism purposes, and that their lives are put at risk for photograph opportunities like Abraham has shared, reports aceshowbiz.com.

"PETA is certain that Farrah, like any mother, would be horrified to learn that lion cubs used for photo ops are torn away from their mothers shortly after birth so that they can be passed from one stranger to another," said a statement from PETA.

"When they grow too big to be used as props, these animals are often abandoned at appalling roadside zoos, slaughtered for meat, or used as targets in canned hunts. We hope that Farrah will stick to animal-free tourism in the future," read the statement.

Abraham hasn't responded to PETA comments yet.