American huntress Sabrina Corgatelli
American huntress defends killing animals saying 'there is a connection with the animal' during a hunt. Twitter

Following Cecil the lion's killing, an American huntress has sparked outrage after hunting down and posting images next to dead animals.

Unlike US dentist Walter Palmer who is facing death threats and calls for extradition for hunting down Zimbabwe's much loved lion Cecil, Idaho huntress Sabrina Corgatelli has defended her actions.

Corgatelli has posted several images from her legal hunt in South Africa on her Facebook page.

The images have fast unleashed a storm of anger over social media.

Speaking to TODAY on 3 August, Corgatelli said: "To me it's not just killing an animal, it's the hunt. There's a lot of personal things in my life that have happened recently that have added to that. I won't get into that or disclose those feelings.

"Everybody just thinks we're cold-hearted killers, and it's not that. There is a connection with the animal, and just because we hunt them doesn't mean we don't have a respect for them.

"Giraffes are very dangerous animals. They could hurt you seriously very quickly."

Corgatelli further said she did not fear losing her job over the hunting.

"Everything I've done here is legal, so how can you fault somebody because of their hobbies?" said Corgatelli.

"How can an employer chastise you for something you do on your personal time that's legally done?"

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