#trending: Mum on TikTok roasted for making baby eat off the floor 'like a chicken’

UTAH, UNITED STATES — TikTok users have called foul on a mother for deliberately making her baby eat food off the floor like a farm animal, deeming her actions "disgusting" and unhygienic.

In a TikTok video that has gone viral, a woman named Raquel Tolman from St George in southwestern Utah demonstrated how she feeds her infant son whenever she is feeling under the weather.

"Sometimes when I'm sick, I like to feed my baby his little snacks as if he was a chicken," the mother of two said as she chucked a handful of puffed cereal at her baby lying on the floor.

"He loves it."

The boy then flipped onto his stomach and began pecking at the food on the carpet.

Ms Tolman's controversial video has racked up more than 6.6 million views, with thousands of users flocking to the comments section to express both anger and amusement.

One comment read: "I find it humiliating and disgusting. Sick or not, I would never treat my child with such disrespect."

Another user wrote: "She's literally feeding her baby off the ground. How is that okay because she's sick? Don't be a mum if you can't take care of (a baby)."

Others were horrified that a mother would let her child eat off a "dirty" carpet and warned that the baby may end up choking.

People also slammed Ms Tolman for treating her son like a "dog" or a "pigeon in the park".

However, many parents were able to relate to Ms Tolman's actions and admitted that they, too, feed their little ones as though they were animals at a petting zoo sometimes.

A fellow parent wrote: "Wait, (you all) are only doing this when you’re sick?"

Another mother confessed: "I do this, too. I'll walk by his play pen and throw a few snacks in there so he crawls around."

One person said: "At the end of the day, they’re going to throw (the snacks) on the floor if you put them in a bowl anyway."

Some users even suggested that Ms Tolman’s feeding method would be beneficial for developing her baby’s motor skills and a healthy immune system.

Following the video, a number of online users gave Ms Tolman's little boy the nickname "free-range baby".