Alison Hammond faces continued criticism from ITV For The Love of Dogs viewers as they call for ‘immediate’ replacement
Alison Hammond continues to face criticism from viewers over her role as host of “For the Love of Dogs” nearly a year after taking over the popular ITV show.
The This Morning presenter has been met with ongoing complaints once again after appearing on Tuesday’s programme where she attempted to help unwanted dogs find their forever home.
The criticism has persisted since she took over hosting duties from the late Paul O’Grady, who passed away aged 67 in March 2023, with many viewers specifically having an issue with the fact that she doesn’t own a dog herself and is reportedly afraid of dogs.
Many fans have called for her to be replaced on the beloved show about Battersea Dogs and Cats Home, leaving viewers to take to their X accounts once again as the new series kicked off tonight.
One viewer posted on X: “How come someone who DOES NOT OWN a dog presents a show about dogs? At least Paul O’Grady absolutely loved dogs.”
Another commented: “Fancy giving show about rehoming dogs to someone who has admitted they don’t like dogs.”
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A third penned: “Alison looks very withdrawn from the dogs and looks absolutely terrified of them and will only go as far as stroking them.”
Someone else added: “I stand by my statement last time… why is Alison Hammond presenting the show? She seems to have no joy or chemistry with any of the dogs she visits!” (sic)
Claire-Louise Nixon, director of the Wheels To Paws charity, previously claimed Hammond was “scared” of her dogs during a 2019 interview and told The Sun that when questioned about her fear, Hammond simply replied: “I’ve got to pay my mortgage.”
An ITV spokesman has previously denied this account.
Hammond’s fear of dogs has been documented in her 2021 autobiography, “You’ve Got To Laugh” where she described witnessing a traumatic incident where a young boy was attacked by a dog.
“The dog took a massive chunk out of his leg and blood poured everywhere. I had to help him hobble back to his mum, screaming in pain. For weeks afterwards, the kids on our street never stopped talking about savage dogs and gushing wounds.”
As she prepared for the second series fronting the programme, Hammond addressed the criticism directly and told Heat Magazine: “I was actually surprised with how much [trolling] I got for doing the show.
“I could understand in the sense that Paul [O’Grady] was so loved, but people were saying ‘How can she do it when she doesn’t have a dog? How can does she love dogs when she doesn’t have one?'”
Hammond defended her position, adding: “It’s like saying, ‘How can you love children when you haven’t got kids?’ It’s such a flawed argument for me, and all I would say is if you don’t want to watch it, don’t watch it.”
Hammond has explained that her busy schedule is the primary reason she doesn’t own a dog herself and explained during Rob Beckett and Josh Widdecombe’s podcast Parenting Hell: “It’s so weird because everyone is like ‘She hasn’t got a dog’ but I can’t have a dog.
“I wouldn’t be around it would be unfair. I do love dogs and that’s the reason I don’t have a dog.”
The presenter’s hectic television commitments, including her roles on This Morning and other programmes, would make it difficult to provide proper care for a pet, however, the explanation has done little to shut down the criticism.