A pre-zoo shopping trip ended up a little more educational than one mother of five had hoped.

Tanya Husnu said she was shocked when her 4-year-old son ran up to her claiming the toy lion she had bought him at a Melbourne, Australia, Kmart had a “willy.”

Confused, the 33-year-old mother looked at the toy and, sure enough, under the lion’s tail was an unmistakable depiction of male genitalia.

Adding to the confusion, the toy elephant and hippopotamus she bought for her other children didn’t have any such appendages.

Just the lion.

“We were planning a trip to the zoo, and I thought it would be really great if the kids could take some animal toys with them on the day,” said Husnu, a 33-year-old professional blogger from Melton.

“We went into Kmart, and my three youngest picked out their own toys. They were all really happy with them.

“Then one of the twins turned the lion around, and my daughter yelled out, ‘Look mom, the lion’s got a willy,’ and they all started laughing.”

Husnu said she wanted Kmart to stop selling the toy, which is aimed at children older than 3.

She said parents should decide when to teach their children about genitalia.

“I thought it was really inappropriate,” she said.

“In this day and age, it’s not acceptable to have things like that on children’s toys.

“I buy a lot of toys, and my house is full of toys. But I’ve never seen anything like this before. It’s so stupid and just plain weird.”

However the mom admits to seeing the funny side of the lion’s appendage.

“I mean, it’s funny as well, and you can’t help but laugh, but it’s still just not appropriate for a child’s toy that is on full display in the kids’ section.

“My kids thought it was hilarious though.

“At the zoo, they kept lifting up the tail and showing strangers walking past the lion’s bits as they walked past and yelling out ‘willy!’

“It was so embarrassing.”

Kmart was contacted to comment on this story.