*(Please read to end of this long post for Channel 5's response!)
I received an email on Sunday evening the 17th May from a very concerned Jenny -
"Oh, Arielle! I am fuming!
I have been watching Dogs Behaving Very Badly on channel 5, and someone asked if it would be safe to feed their dog a vegan diet.
So they got a dog nutritionist in.
Hah! Only twice a week was the answer!
She said there have been no trials or research to show it is safe long-term. They didn't mention the wealth of commercially available vegan foods for dogs but just showed one that we've never seen before!
If you didn't see it, you could do on catch-up; it was on at 8pm this evening.
Frankie just had his 6-monthly check up, and passed with glowing colours. His heart murmur is stable, and he shows no sign of arthritis.
Kind regards Jenny"
I feel ALL of Jenny's frustration as I sat down to watch the replay of the Channel 5 episode from Sunday night the 17th May.
The episode started with a very overweight giant Leonberger dog who wouldn't go for any walks at all unless it was to the local pub! He was pushed and pulled just to get in the car, but as soon as he saw the pub, he raced to get in!
When he got there, he was immediately treated to a bag of Mini Cheddars which he devoured even trying to eat the entire plastic packaging!
As a plant powered vet knowing the dangers of highly processed foods being fed to our dogs such as Mini Cheddars that contain these ingredients (from the Tesco website) -
Mini Cheddars typically contain flour (wheat flour), vegetable oils, dried cheese, sugar, glucose syrup, salt, dried whey, barley malt extract, and raising agents.
ALL of these ingredients are highly addictive to us to buy more, especially the dried cheese addition that contains casomorphin meant for a calf to bond with its mother and crave finding the udder for nourishment.
The combination of the casomorphin in the dried cheese, the fats, salt and high sugars, all make Mini Cheddars highly addictive for us and our dogs and is the reason why we have an obesity epidemic amongst the animals that share our homes as they share in our dangerous ultra-processed food addictions.
The programme then moved swiftly onto behaviorist Graeme Hall investigating about vegan dog food diets, and I do have to agree with Jenny that the nutritionist was very badly informed!
We have SO many complete plant powered foods available now - premium dry and complete delicious wet, and the science has shown that dogs can not only be healthier on a complete plant-based diet, but they could live longer - so many published studies as shown here!
And we are most proud of all of you who, like Jenny, have sent in your success stories of your dogs on a complete plant powered diet as we have SO many here!!
The little Griffon's Mum who sent in the clip, can be SO reassured that Griffons de Bruxellois actually do SO well on a fully plant-based diet such as Give a Dog A Bean as shown with success stories of Griffons Manny and Ruby who are thriving on their complete plant powered diets here.
Email sent to Channel 5 about misinformation
Our lovely Jenny (Mum of Frankie), has taken matters into her own hands with the misinformation aired!
She sent this email to the Channel 5 team at viewerenquiries@channel5.com (if anyone else wants to join her in complaining!) which she has kindly shared with us -
"Hello Graeme,
I watched your programme which aired yesterday on Channel 5 at 8pm.
I don't know where you found your dog nutritionist, but she is way behind the times!
Her statement that there has been insufficient research to prove that a vegan diet does not cause long-term damage to dogs is not true, and her recommendation that it is only safe to feed a dog vegan meals only twice a week is totally misleading.
The poor couple who asked if it was safe to feed their dogs a vegan diet have been sadly misinformed. I recommend you look at the Just Be Kind website, https://justbekind.co.uk/pages/the-science and also check out https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0265662
My dog will be 15 in September and has just passed his 6-monthly check up with flying colours (apart from the start of cataracts). The heart murmur he has had for some time is stable, and he shows no symptoms.
He shows no sign of arthritis. His coat is glossy and he is still full of energy.
Now he has a tracker, I know that his average walk over the last 2 weeks is just over 11 miles a day, the longest being 13.3 miles (read about Frankie here).
He has been fed a totally vegan diet since I found him as a rescue almost 9 years ago.
There is a huge variety of vegan pet food commercially available now, and lots of healthy, happy dogs on a vegan diet.
I would like to see you correct the erroneous information given on your programme please. Please acknowledge my email and assure me that you have looked further into this issue.
Kind regards Jenny and Frankie"
(PS we LOVE you Jenny and your lucky sweet Frankie!💚)
Thank goodness for people like Jenny who has the courage to not only write in when she has noticed that everything said is incorrect; but she has done absolutely everything right by her sweet Frankie who has such a wonderful story shown below -
Frankie still walks 9 miles at almost 15!
Frankie is now coming up to 15. He is still full of vigour; we usually walk up to 9 miles a day - amazing for a large breed dog with a heart murmur!!
*Follow up from Channel 5 about their misinformation on Dogs Behaving Badly
It is not just the very concerned Jenny who wrote in to Channel 5 about this misinformation; we also had a number of you who wrote to Channel 5 extremely angry about this misinformation.
Peter who feeds his Spaniel Thomas a fully plant-based diet was equally as livid and he wrote in and did receive a reply from Channel 5 stating:
Dear Peter,
Thank you for taking the time to write in about the programme “Dogs Behaving (Very) Badly”. We note your comments about the discussion of canine diets in the programme and the research you have highlighted.
The segment you refer to reflected the professional opinion of the expert contributor featured in the programme. We accept that there are a range of views within the veterinary community, and expert opinions may differ.
We do not consider that the programme was materially inaccurate. The contributor’s comments were clearly framed as their opinion based on their experience and expertise.
We are grateful to you for sharing the studies and information you have referenced, and will pass these on to the production team which makes “Dog Behaving (Very) Badly” for their information. Thank you again for taking the time to write to us.
Yours sincerely VIEWER ENQUIRIES TEAM Channel 5
This was absolutely NOT good enough for Peter and he very rightly replied with this email to Channel 5 (and a huge thank you to you Peter for standing alongside SO many of you who wrote in with what you have replied) -
For the benefit of the organisations copied into this correspondence, I am providing a brief outline of the issue. I have raised a formal complaint with Channel 5 and Ofcom regarding statements made in an episode of Dogs Behaving (Very) Badly, first aired between 5–12 May 2026, in which the programme’s “expert” claimed that dogs cannot safely be fed a vegan diet and that vegan meals should be limited to no more than twice a week.
These statements were presented as authoritative nutritional guidance, yet they are contradicted by peer‑reviewed scientific research, by veterinary‑formulated plant‑based diets, and by the existence of legally regulated, nutritionally complete vegan dog foods manufactured and sold across the UK and Europe.
My complaint concerns both material inaccuracy and potential harm, as the broadcast may mislead viewers about the safety and legitimacy of complete plant‑based dog diets.
I am including vegan dog‑food manufacturers and vegan organisations in this email so that they are aware of the issue and because their products and expertise directly demonstrate that complete vegan dog nutrition is lawful, nutritionally adequate, commercially established, and fully regulated within the UK and European pet‑food market.
I am also referencing the Plant‑Powered Dog Owners UK community and Vegan Dog Nutrition UK Community, which represents thousands of dog guardians and professionals engaged in evidence-based plant-based canine nutrition, feeding nutritionally complete plant‑based diets and providing extensive real‑world evidence contradicting the claims made in the programme.
Thank you Channel 5 for your further correspondence. I note your confirmation that the matter has been reviewed by your Legal & Compliance team. However, your response does not address the substantive issues raised in my original complaint or in my escalation.
For the avoidance of doubt, I must therefore set out the continuing deficiencies in your position, with reference to the applicable regulatory framework governing pet food in the United Kingdom.
1. Failure to Address the Factual Inaccuracies Identified
Your reply again relies on the assertion that the contributor’s statements represented their “professional opinion.” This does not resolve the concerns raised. The programme presented the contributor’s comments as authoritative nutritional guidance, not as subjective or contested views.
The statements in question — that dogs “cannot safely be fed a vegan diet” and that vegan meals should be limited to “twice a week” — are verifiable factual claims. They are capable of being tested against established nutritional science and against the regulatory standards governing the manufacture and sale of complete dog foods in the UK.
Your response does not explain:
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how these claims were verified prior to broadcast,
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why no balancing or contextualising information was provided, or
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how the programme ensured viewers were not materially misled on a matter involving animal health and welfare.
2. Contradiction With UK Pet Food Law and FEDIAF Nutritional Standards
Your response also fails to address a fundamental regulatory point: Complete vegan dog foods are legally manufactured, regulated, and commercially sold throughout the United Kingdom.
These products are required to comply with:
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FEDIAF Nutritional Guidelines for Complete and Complementary Pet Food for Cats and Dogs, which set the recognised nutritional standards for complete diets across Europe and the UK.
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Regulation (EC) No 767/2009 on the placing on the market and use of feed, retained in UK law post‑EU exit, which governs the composition, labelling, and marketing of pet foods.
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The Animal Feed (Hygiene, Sampling etc.) Regulations 2015, which implement feed hygiene and safety requirements for all pet food manufacturers operating in the UK.
Under these regulations, a product may only be marketed as a “complete” dog food if it is formulated to meet all nutritional requirements of the species for which it is intended.
Multiple UK‑regulated manufacturers produce complete vegan dog foods that meet these standards. These products are lawfully sold, widely available, and intended to be fed as a dog’s sole diet, not as an occasional supplement.
The contributor’s assertion that vegan food should be fed only “twice a week” is therefore:
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inconsistent with UK and EU‑derived feed law,
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inconsistent with FEDIAF nutritional standards, and
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factually incorrect, irrespective of personal opinion.
Your response asserts compliance with “all applicable laws and regulatory requirements” but provides no explanation of how the programme satisfied:
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Section 2 – Harm and Offence,
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Section 5 – Due Accuracy, and
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Section 7 – Fairness.
A bare assertion of compliance is not a substitute for demonstrating it. You have not addressed:
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the risk of harm arising from broadcasting inaccurate nutritional guidance,
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the absence of any balancing or contextual information, or
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the failure to verify the contributor’s factual claims against established scientific and regulatory evidence.
Given that the contributor’s statements directly contradict both peer‑reviewed research and the regulatory framework governing complete dog foods in the UK, the programme’s presentation of these claims as authoritative guidance raises clear concerns under Section 5 (Due Accuracy).
4. Record for Ofcom
As previously noted, this matter has been referred to Ofcom for independent assessment. I will provide Ofcom with a copy of your latest response, which unfortunately continues to avoid the substantive issues raised and does not demonstrate that the broadcaster took reasonable steps to ensure accuracy or prevent potential harm.
5. Conclusion
For clarity, the concerns raised relate not to the existence of differing professional views, but to the broadcast of potentially factually incorrect statements presented as authoritative nutritional guidance, without balance, context, or reference to the established scientific and regulatory evidence.
Your latest response does not address these issues.
Which other Channel 5 TV programme spoke about vegan dog food?
In October 2023, I was invited to appear live on the morning Channel 5 TV airing of the Jeremy Vine show.
They had just had news of the groundbreaking study by Prof Andrew Knight that if all the worlds' dogs went vegan, it could quite literally 'save our planet' as the environmental impact would be so huge! Listen to Prof Knight speak about these findings in our Plant Powered Paws Podcast here.
With this news breaking in October 2023, they then called on me Dr Arielle who is a passionate plant powered vet, as they wanted proof that a dog actually liked vegan dog food and they wanted him to eat it live on TV!!
I didn't hesitate as our little Ruff adores his food and we were just about to release our Give A Dog A Bean wet food that month which I took with me.
Jeremy was very taken with Ruff and I loved the whole experience.
It still feels surreal to this day that we were on TV....but showing the nation how much dogs can LOVE their plant powered complete foods and Channel 5 aired everything I said as it was a live production!!
