Shoppers spot 'disgusting' detail on woman's shoulders at checkout

“Staff were amused but customers were sort of shaking their heads,” an onlooker recalled. 

Perth shoppers have been left horrified after spotting a woman inside a supermarket with pet rats nestled on each of her shoulders. 

The pet owner was casually waiting in line at the checkout of a Spudshed grocery store in Ellenbrook during peak shopping time on Tuesday.

Despite her nonchalant demeanour, onlookers said they were “shocked” at the sight of rodents in such proximity to fresh produce.

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Image: Perth Now

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"Not something you expect to see every day"

The startling photo, which was shared with Perth Now, showed a hairless rat and a black rat comfortably perched on the woman’s shoulders. 

“It was 5 pm in the checkout line, it was busy, and I noticed a lady in front of me with what appeared to be two rats around her shoulders,” a customer told the publication. 

“Why would she bother to bring her rats to the shops? It’s just not something you expect to see every day.”

The customer said that staff were only alerted to the issue once the woman was already on her way out of the store, and were “amused” by it.

But other shoppers were less than impressed.

“Customers were sort of shaking their heads,” the shopper recalled. “I was shocked she thought it was okay to come to the supermarket with rats and with all the uncovered fresh food.”

“It was incredulous that you’d find that in a supermarket. The last thing I want to find is rat turds in my shopping.”

Kidspot has reached out to Spudshed for comment. 

Image: Facebook

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Not the first pet sighting 

It comes after a shopper saw a cat sitting inside of a trolley in a Canberra ALDI last week. 

Upon closer inspection, she realised that it was an assistance pet, which is an animal trained to accompany a person with a disability or a mental health condition.

After snapping a photo of the pet, a customer posted it to the ALDI fans Australia Facebook group, writing, “Here is something that is rare to see in an ALDI store.”

“It is the first time I have ever seen an assistance cat anywhere in public.”

Comments were mixed, with some questioning the necessity of such a pet. 

“How does a cat assist in any way? They only want you when you have the cat food out,” one user wrote.

Others raised the issue of allergies…“My kids would be in trouble if they sat there after this cat! They have severe allergies,” a mum shared.

Then people raised hygiene considerations, saying, “It shouldn’t be in a trolley where we put our food!”

However, among all the criticism, some people highlighted the importance of assistance animals and emphasised how helpful they can be to people, especially in doing everyday tasks like grocery shopping. 

“Honestly, I feel if someone’s mental health feels the need for companionship, show compassion and mind our own business,” someone urged. 

“I don’t see an issue. If it’s helping a person deal with their life, then that’s all that matters,” another concluded. 

Originally published as Shoppers spot 'disgusting' detail on woman's shoulders at checkout