Alison Hammond made her debut on For the Love of Dogs on April 16 as she took over the role from the late Paul O’Grady.
Paul had hosted the beloved ITV show – which is on today (Saturday, May 18) – from 2012 up until his death last year. Earlier this year, ITV announced that Alison would take over as host for the new series.
As the show made its return to screens, viewers’ reactions came pouring in and it was mixed to say the least.
Some fans had taken issue with Alison becoming the new presenter of the show as she doesn’t own a dog. She’s now hit back at the criticism and called it “a flawed argument”.
Alison Hammond on For the Love of Dogs backlash
The This Morning presenter told The Sun‘s TV mag: “I was actually surprised with how much I got for doing the show.
“I could understand in the sense that Paul was so loved and people were saying: ‘How can she do Love Of Dogs when she doesn’t have a dog? How does she love dogs when she doesn’t have a dog?’ It’s like saying: ‘How can you love children when you haven’t got kids?'”
She added: “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.’ That’s what I would say to those trolls: ‘Don’t watch it then. If you don’t want to help Battersea, don’t watch it.'”
Alison Hammond’s response to trolling
Alison said “trolls will be trolls” and she’ll “still do what I do best which is TV presenting”.
She also had a message for the trolls, saying the horrible comments they make about her “says more about them than it does me”.
I was actually surprised with how much I got for doing the show.
As Alison hosted the first episode of the new For the Love of Dogs series, viewers shared their thoughts. Some people weren’t keen on Alison taking over Paul‘s spot.
One person said on X: “So how many boycotted @AlisonHammond For the Love of Dogs show? Got to ask the question why her? I think this has backfired and they know they’ve made a bad choice.”
Another wrote: “Wrong person for the job.”
However, there was a lot of support for Alison on X. One insisted: “People are moaning about Alison Hammond, less looking at the presenter and more looking at the dogs. You are around to watch them so keep your mind focused.”
Another admitted: “I honestly think @AlisonHammond did a great job. That’s not being disrespectful to Paul O’Grady who I reckon would be chuffed with the way she handled it. Good on you, Alison.”
Read more: Alison Hammond asks This Morning guest Will Best on a date after shutting down engagement rumours
For The Love of Dogs airs today (Saturday, May 18) at 4pm on ITV1 and ITVX.
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