SHOPPERS at a Purbeck supermarket were surprised to see this early morning customer.

The deer must have fancied something on offer at Lytchett Matravers' Tesco Express. Either that or it was there for the air conditioning, as Dorset baked in a heatwave earlier this week.

Manda Griffiths snapped a bemused staff member shooing the unlikely visitor away.

It is thought to be a sika deer, which are common to Purbeck.

They were first introduced to Brownsea Island in the 1890s, but being such good swimmers some escaped to start populations on the mainland.

Grasses and outdoor shrubs are its usual meal of choice, but maybe this one fancied something tastier from the deli.