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WARNING: This story contains an image of an animal carcass that some readers may find disturbing.

A photo of independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. posing with a splayed and barbecued animal carcass has come to light, and a veterinarian’s allegation of what the beast might be put a disturbing twist on the story.

Kennedy texted the picture to a friend who was traveling to Asia, according to Vanity Fair.

The candidate advised the friend to visit a restaurant in Korea that serves dog meat, the report Tuesday said.

The outlet reported metadata on the original photograph reveals the image was taken in 2010.

That was the same year a doctor discovered RFK Jr. had a dead parasitic worm in his brain.

The photo shows Kennedy and a woman holding a barbecued carcass, posing as if about to eat it.

The mystery animal roast, which appears to be splayed and staked on a spit, is difficult to identify.

An expert examination resulted in at least one disturbing possibility.

A veterinarian found the animal had 13 pairs of ribs, including the “floating ribs” that identify the carcass as a dog, Vanity Fair reported.

Democrats, to whom Kennedy poses a threat as a liberal independent candidate in this fall’s election, were more than happy to take the “roasted dog” story and run with it.

Matt Corridoni, spokesman for the National Democratic Committee, shared the photo on X and said RFK Jr. was “happily posing with a barbecued dog.”

Here’s a photo of @RobertKennedyJr happily posing with a barbecued dog.

New reporting in @VanityFair reveals a friend has warned RFK Jr.’s campaign could cause him to “go down as one of the great villains in American history.”

I think that’s already happened… pic.twitter.com/iBMNVjuCwJ

— Matt Corridoni (@mattcorridoni) July 2, 2024

Kennedy confirmed the photograph was real but said not all of the report’s details were correct.

When asked about the Vanity Fair article, he said the picture was taken in South America and identified the animal as something else altogether.

Kennedy appeared on the “Breaking Points” podcast on Tuesday.

“The article is a lot of garbage,” he told host Saagar Enjeti.

“The picture that they said is of me eating a dog is actually me eating a goat in Patagonia on a whitewater trip many years ago on the Futaleufu River,” the candidate said.

“They say they have an expert that has identified that as a dog carcass,” he said. “It’s just not true.”

Although the thought of eating “man’s best friend” is revolting to most people in the Western world, this isn’t the case overseas.

Different social norms and sharply rising meat prices have caused some restaurants in China and in other nations to begin offering dog meat on the menu.