A parrot is seen during a pet carnival in Cairo, Egypt, on Dec. 6, 2019. Held at the garden of Cairo's Child Center for Civilization and Creativity, Aleef 4th Open Air Pets Carnival, which kicked off on Friday, attracted thousands of pet owners and lovers. (Xinhua/Ahmed Gomaa)

They have millions of followers on Instagram. They generate major profits for their owners. They are... pet influencers.

Grumpy Cat, Lil Bub, Boo the Pomeranian and Doug the Pug are just some of the internet's star animals.

The death this week of Lil Bub, a cat whose tongue was always hanging out due to genetic anomalies, inspired a wave of emotion that highlighted the internet's power to elevate just about anything to cult status.

Her story garnered three million followers on Facebook, 2.4 million on Instagram and more than 800,000 on Twitter.

Since 2013, Lil Bub has also been the face of campaigns with People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) promoting sterilization and pet adoption.

But while PETA campaigns director Ashley Byrne welcomes pet influencers' charitable ventures, she is also adamant that the work must not come at the expense of the pets' welfare.

AFP