When shopping trolleys become dog beds: Great supermarket pet debate rages on

A small black dog sitting among the spring onions in a Coles trolley has reignited one of Australia's most divisive retail debates—and the arguments might surprise you.

The photo, snapped in the cereal aisle of a Sydney Coles, shows a furry passenger nestled between loose fruit and packaged groceries while his owner shops for health foods nearby.

The social media post sparked hundreds of responses, dividing Australians into two distinct camps: those horrified by the hygiene implications and those who couldn't see what all the fuss was about.

But behind this seemingly simple disagreement lies a complex web of food safety regulations, disability rights, and changing social expectations about where our four-legged family members belong.

The law is crystal clear—mostly

Under the Disability Discrimination Act 1992, trained assistance dogs and their handlers must be given access to all public places, including supermarkets, with businesses required to allow assistance animals in customer-accessible areas. This isn't negotiable—it's the law.

However, there's a crucial distinction that many shoppers don't understand. Service or assistance dogs are specially trained to perform tasks or mitigate a person's disability and are legally protected for public access, while therapy dogs provide comfort and emotional support but have no legal right to public access.

Food Standards Australia New Zealand makes it clear that assistance animals must be allowed in customer areas of food businesses, but it's up to businesses to decide if they let pet dogs in outdoor dining areas.

The Coles spokesperson confirmed what most major supermarkets maintain: 'Assistance and companion animals are welcome to accompany their owners in our stores if they are clearly identified by a collar, coat or harness. We do not allow for everyday pets or animals to enter our stores'.

When the rules get complicated

Even assistance animal rights aren't absolute, as a recent Queensland case demonstrates. A couple was banned from their local Foodworks store in September 2022 after they refused repeated requests to place their assistance dogs on a lead while shopping.

The Queensland Civil and Administrative Tribunal dismissed their discrimination claims, finding that the leash condition was not imposed due to their disabilities but because they were challenging the store's management authority.

This case highlights an important principle: even legitimate assistance animals must meet reasonable behavioural standards in public spaces.

The hygiene question that won't go away

Food safety concerns aren't just emotional reactions—they're backed by scientific standards. Food businesses must maintain high standards of food safety and hygiene to ensure animals do not contaminate food.

The social media poster raised a valid point about allergen exposure: 'What if someone was allergic to dogs and had no idea a literal dog was sitting in their trolley moments before they put their food in it?'

While trolleys aren't exactly pristine to begin with (consider how often they're actually sanitised), the concern reflects broader anxieties about food safety in an era where we're more conscious than ever about contamination risks.

The Bunnings effect

Bunnings has welcomed well-behaved pets that are on a lead since 2017, asking that owners maintain full control and clean up after them. This policy has been in place for over eight years and has undoubtedly shifted public expectations about where pets are welcome.

Bunnings' Managing Director Mike Schneider says positive feedback from pet-owning customers was one of the underlying factors in launching their pet category, their largest category expansion in two decades.

However, this hardware haven approach doesn't translate to food retailers for obvious reasons. The key difference? Bunnings sells tools and timber, not fresh produce that ends up on dinner plates.

What this means for everyday shoppers

The supermarket pet debate reflects deeper changes in how Australians view their animals. Pet ownership increased by 10 per cent during the pandemic, with the needs of pets becoming an 'unnecessarily high priority' in some critics' views.

For shoppers concerned about animals in food environments, the rules are actually on your side. Legitimate complaints about pets (not assistance animals) in supermarkets should be taken seriously by management.

For those with genuine assistance animals, clear identification and well-trained behaviour are your best protection against discrimination.

The generational divide

There's an unmistakable generational element to this debate. Many older Australians grew up with clearer boundaries between indoor and outdoor spaces for animals, while younger generations often view pets as family members who accompany them everywhere.

As one commenter noted: 'Being older school and coming from the country my parents had a saying 'people inside and animals outside' for health and cleanliness reasons. I don't disagree with their philosophy'.

This isn't about being anti-pet—it's about maintaining appropriate boundaries in food environments where hygiene matters most.

Moving forward with common sense

The solution isn't complicated, but it requires everyone to understand and respect the boundaries. Assistance animals perform vital functions for people with disabilities and their rights are legally protected. Pet dogs, no matter how beloved, don't belong in food retail environments.

Assistance animal users have a right to have their animal with them, the same as any other disability support. Despite this, assistance animal users experience barriers including animals being refused entry to businesses.

The challenge is distinguishing between legitimate assistance animals and pets masquerading as service dogs—a trend that undermines the rights of people who genuinely need their assistance animals.

What are your thoughts on pets in shopping environments? Have you encountered situations like the Coles trolley incident, and how did it make you feel about your own shopping experience? Share your experiences in the comments below.