This is the moment a cheetah knocks spots off a blogger when he tries to pet it during a staged video shoot.

Influencer Nouman Hassan, who has more than 2.2 million Instagram followers, was posing with the big cat described as his pet at his home in Lahore, Pakistan.

But as he sat on a sofa and tried to scratch behind its ears, video footage shows the cheetah turning on him with a massive clout from its right paw.

Then as rattled Hassan leaps up,the big cat growls bearing its huge, sharp teeth as a second man holds it back with a chain attached to a collar.

Clearly spooked Hassan backs off as the cat growls again and shuffles off rubbing his ear as the cameraman filming the clip laughs uncontrollably.

Hassan mutters ruefully: “Very friendly, very friendly.”

The clip titled ‘Cheetah Attack’ has been viewed more than 2.3 million times since it was shared on the platform on 13th May.

But it infuriated many social media users who criticised Hassan for keeping wild animals as pets.

One Instagram user ‘@annebienek’ said: “Don’t keep wild animals as pets! They deserve to be free!”

Then user ‘@kristoffmwb’ commented: “Smiling but crying deep inside, walking away was the best option.”

And ‘@freiqui_lino’ added: “What a poor mentality!!! You removed the wild animal from its habitat to raise it as a pet.

“Bad for the normal balance of the ecosystem and even worse for the human being who pretends not to see the short and long term consequences.”

Hassan is notorious for his apparently casual treatment of big cats and other wildlife.

Last year, he faced an angry backlash for buying lion cubs from Lahore Safari Park for his private zoo.

Other clips show him hugging a tiger.