Starbucks customers call out the coffee chain over polar bear cookie design

Starbucks' polar bear cookie was likely intended to be a cuddly-looking treat: A white icing-covered sugar cookie in the shape of the wintery animal, with a red scarf wrapped around his neck.

But when one Redditor and Imgur user suggested that the cozy scarf actually looked a whole lot like blood oozing from the poor bear's neck, the image of it earned nearly three million views and thousands of social media shares from concerned - and amused - customers.

The image has gained so much traction that most people seem unaware that the cookie in question isn't even available to buy anymore, and was actually discontinued way back in 2010. 

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Gruesome treat: A Redditor pointed out that this cookie, shaped like a polar bear wearing a scarf, looks like the polar bear's neck has been slit

Whoops! Images of the 'delicious, adorable holiday treat' have gone viral, with most people joking about the unintentional design flaw

After the original image, which shows a plate of the polar bear cookies in a Starbucks display case, was shared on Imgur and Reddit, some viewers seem to dig back into their own picture collections to find similar snaps of the cookie.

People shared other angles of it on Twitter, put out next to old Christmas-themed Starbucks drink cups, sitting in trays, and laid out on top of paper bags.

Some people, certainly, were not happy about the faux-gory sweets, lumping them in with the supposed 'War on Christmas' that the coffee company is perpetuation with its red holiday cups.

'Ok so Starbucks gets rid of their Christmas cups then they slit polar bear throats on their cookies?' wrote one girl named Davin Lee. 

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Morbid: Though a few people expressed outrage that Starbucks was continuing its supposed 'War on Christmas', most saw the humor in the situation

Cookie murder: One Twitter user referenced Game of Thrones to joke about the polar bears' unfortunate ends

Double check the design: Many were amused by the accidentally bloody dessert

'Starbucks is at it again with their relentless war on Christmas.Now they've slit the throats of the polar bear cookies,' wrote another woman, Eimantas Balta, who seemed actually convinced that Starbucks would purposefully sell a cookie that promoted the bloody murder of animals.  

Most people, of course, were simply amused by the design flaw, which was clearly meant to depict a scarf but looked unfortunately similar to a sad fate for these little creatures.

'Looks like they got iced,' joked one Redditor, while another added darkly: 'Global warming is getting impatient and is adapting a more hands-on approach.' 

Not for sale: The cookie was actually discontinued in 2010; the viral pictures are all old

Forget the coffee: Some people said the cookies reminded them of the bears in Coca-Cola commercials

Others expressed exasperation at those determined to see the cookies as part of some greater snub of Christians, pointing out that no one seemed to have a problem with them back when they were actually sold in stores five years ago. 

As the company told BuzzFeed, the design was discontinued in 2010, and Starbucks now sells similar cookies depicting snowmen in red scarves.

'In December of 2010 we served smiling polar bear cookies in cozy scarves,' the spokesperson said. 'They are just one example of our tradition to offer holiday cookies that are festive and delicious. This year you can find snowmen cookies and gingerbread people in holiday sweaters.'

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