A disabled mum told reporters she was asked to leave a Sainsbury’s store after staff insisted her support dog “was not real”.
Bex Clifton said employees at the supermarket “shouted at her” in front of other shoppers after she entered with her emotional support pooch Maxxy, a nine-year-old Jack Russell collie cross.
Bex, who has a hidden disability, told The Mirror had been in the shop in Basingstoke, Hampshire, for 25 minutes before she was asked to leave.
She said: “It made me feel discriminated against. I’ve got a disability and them shouting at me made me feel discriminated. The second time my daughter was with me and she was in tears.”
Bex said the Sainsbury’s worker shouted from her position at the customer service desk: “He’s not a service dog”.
She has since complained to the supermarket giant, which has apologised and given Bex a voucher as a goodwill gesture.
Bex said: “This was about raising awareness. A lot of people don’t really know what an assistance dog really is. Everyone thinks it’s a guide dog and that’s it. Not many people have heard of emotional support animals.”
A Sainsbury’s spokesman said: “We have apologised to Rebecca for her experience and provided her with a gesture of goodwill so that we can welcome her back into store with Maxxy.”
