We never say no to a good freebie, but Pizza Hut were more than a little off the mark with their recent promotion.

When ordering a pizza, you might expect free garlic bread, or a free soft drink… but a free hamster?! That’s what one Australian branch of the fast food chain was apparently offering with a recent promotion. It’s enough to put us off our dinner!

The sign at the store in Mount Waverley, Melbourne read “Buy 10 large pizzas and get one free small animal from Pets Story.”

Managers at the store later claimed the offer was a misprint and that the promotion was actually for a small animal care kit. Which, to be honest, is an equally weird thing to offer with pizza!

Speaking about the offer, a senior employee at the store said, “The condition was if someone came into the store and wanted to redeem it, we would ask them what pet they had and then they could receive an update on their kit — such as a fish bowl. That is what we have in stock for this promotion, we haven't got 300 animals sitting in our backyard waiting to give them away.”

However Debra Tranter, president of animal care group Oscar’s Law, said she was given a different story when she approached the store to ask about the weird offer. She claims a member of staff admitted that the plan was to give away guinea pigs and rabbits. Uh-oh…

Pizza Hut have distanced themselves from the controversy, which they say was not approved by the company’s HQ.

“We once again apologise for this thoughtless promotion ever occurring and would like to reassure you all that this matter is being seriously dealt with,” Pizza Hut officials said in a Facebook post.