Dogsey

A blind man said he was made to feel “disgusted and ashamed” after being told to take his guide dog out of the local supermarket he has been using for years. David Bennett, who has been blind for two years following a brain tumor, said he could not believe what he was put through.

Mr Bennett was shopping for groceries at Freshways in Charing Cross, Birkenhead when he was told to take his Labrador, Norma, out of the shop because staff were worried she would brush against an ankle-level display of sweets. A fellow shopper tried to speak up for Mr Bennett but after unsuccessfully trying to convince staff that Norma was a guide dog, Mr Bennett left the shop.

Speaking to a local newspaper, Freshways' store manager, Gregory Terence, apologised for the incident, saying there had been a misunderstanding. “We didn't want him to leave the shop,” he said., “but my staff were worried that the dog would eat the chocolate that was on the lower shelf.” He went on to confirm that Mr Bennett was welcome to shop at Freshways whenever he wished to.

A spokesman for Guide Dogs for the Blind said: “We will be contacting the owners to give them a better understanding of the law.

“Guide dogs are exempt from the usual rules regarding dogs in shops. Refusing entry to guide dogs refuses entry to people who are blind and as entitled to shop in the same place as people whose sight is not impaired.”

The spokesman said that they would do all they could to ensure Mr Bennett continued to visit the shop. However, Mr Bennett, stating that his dog is very well behaved, said he was not sure if he would return.