Aldi fans left divided after customer brings her cat into the store

Is it cute? Or bang out of order?

A customer of the supermarket chain recently snapped the photo of the feline in the town in Canberra, Australia.

The picture, which appeared in the 'Aldi Fans in Australia' Facebook group has divided people and sparked a lot of debate in the comments section of the post, with many furious that an animal could be allowed in a place with so much loose, fresh food.

Apparently, the pet is an 'assistance support cat' for its owner and are usually provided to elderly people or those with mobility issues.

They can also be given to autistic children for emotional support and anxiety relief.

Many, however, are not sympathetic to the suggested grounds for allowing the animal to be permitted in the supermarket, and expressed their outrage and disgust in the comments section below the post.

One user said: "So anyone can buy a harness for an animal and call it an assistance pet and take it anywhere. Ridiculous."

Another wrote: "Yuck! Assistance or not. I don't believe animals should be allowed in our trolleys where we put our food."

"How unhygienic to have a cat in a food supermarket," was another comment that received many likes.

One other person argued that it poses a health hazard to those allergic to cats.

She wrote: "My kids would be in trouble if they sat there after this cat! They have severe allergies."

Daily Mail Australia contacted Aldi for a statement on the issue, but they declined.

Regardless of what anyone thinks, the Disability Discrimination Act 1992, states that a creature is considered an assistance animal if it is 'trained to assist a person with a disability'.

So, as long as the owner could show that they have a disability, this particular feline friend can carry on perusing the aisles of Aldi for as long as they're needed.

Who knows, maybe the cat will pick up a plush new bed for itself or a forty litre bag of litter in the middle aisle.

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