Animal lover Ricky Gervais

Oct 29, 2008, 5:00 GMT

He was obviously just having a laugh- poor misunderstood Ricky Gervais - The British comic star joked last week that he gave his pet dog Botox - a cosmetic treatment which smoothes out wrinkles - but is worried some animal lovers may have believed his quip. © Albert L. Ortega / PR Photos

Ricky Gervais would never do anything to hurt the "natural beauty" of an animal.

The British comic star joked last week that he gave his pet dog Botox - a cosmetic treatment which smoothes out wrinkles - but is worried some animal lovers may have believed his quip.

He wrote on his blog: "There's a story going round that I injected my pet dog with Botox. I didn't. I haven't got a dog. I would never do anything to hurt or enhance the unconditional natural beauty of an animal. It was a joke."

Ricky, 47, originally quipped: "I gave my Labrador Botox injections, now it has a shiny face. It can't smile or talk as well. Well, it could never really talk - dogs can't talk."

Although the actor - who can currently be seen in new comedy 'Ghost Town' - doesn't own a dog he does have a pet cat, which he adores.

He previously wrote on his blog: "My cat is calm, normal and at peace although cats can be aloof. Scientific fact. What's my favourite sound? I'll tell you. It's that sound your cat makes when you've been away in North America for three weeks and it meows for five hours (literally) when you get home, showing so much affection that it starts to get hilarious.

"And as it starts to lose its voice it goes through the phase of sounding like a lion cub, then quacking like a duck until eventually it rasps like a baby crow. It is the cutest f***ing thing in the world."