The mother who put her child on a leash and put the photos on Facebook.

Because a child is not an animal.

Shocking images of a naked young boy on all fours with a leash around his neck have gone viral.

And they were posted online by his own mother.

Alongside the images, in which the child was crawling next to a dish full of dog food, she wrote: “My new pet dog. My child’s stoned to death he follows everything I told him. Got so many laughs here.”

She isn’t laughing now.

Her son – who is reportedly only 18 months old – has been taken out of her care and she could face criminal charges.

The woman was tracked down in the Philippines by a local social welfare agency within 24 hours of uploading photographs of the abuse to Facebook.

She has since deactivated her account.

Bataan Department of Social Welfare and Development head Marilyn Tigas said both the child and mother would undergo psychological assessment, Inquirer.net reports.

“The parent will undergo continuous counselling and we will assess the parenting capabilities of the mother,” Ms Tigas said.

She said the stay-at-home mother may be charged with child abuse over the incident.

“Her child and a cousin were playing in an area where there were many animals, as if they were mimicking animals,” Ms Tigas said.

“The mother photographed her son seemingly in jest.”

The woman initially tried to stop social workers rescuing the child, even promising to issue a public apology, but authorities persisted.

The matter is being investigated.

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