Treatment of dog in A Dog’s Purpose movie being investigated

[Western]

LOS ANGELES—The organization that ensures animal safety in film and television productions said Wednesday it is investigating whether a frightened dog was forced into churning water during the making of A Dog’s Purpose.

American Humane has also suspended its safety representative who worked on the film and is hiring an independent investigator to explore the matter, said Mark Stubis, a spokesman for the organization.

The film’s producer, Amblin Entertainment, and distributor, Universal Pictures, said in a joint statement that they are reviewing the footage, but they are confident that “great care and concern was shown” for the dog, a German shepherd named Hercules.

Animal Justice, a Toronto-based animal law organization, filed animal-cruelty complaints over the treatment of the German shepherd.

The footage was apparently shot near Winnipeg in November. It first surfaced on the website TMZ and shows the distressed dog fighting to stay out of the water by repeatedly clawing at the edge of the pool.

A subsequent shot shows the dog submerged under the water while a voice is hear yelling “Cut it!” and handlers moved in to pull the animal out.
The movie stars Dennis Quaid and is directed by Lasse Hallström. It is set to be released this month.

Animal Justice said it has filed complaints with the Winnipeg Humane Society, the Chief Veterinary Office of Manitoba, and the Winnipeg police department alleging violations of federal and provincial animal protection laws.

Universal Pictures did not respond to a request for comment from The Associated Press.

“There were several days of rehearsal of the water scenes to ensure Hercules was comfortable with all of the stunts,” the statement said.
People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals said in a Twitter post that dog lovers should boycott the film “to send the message that dogs & other animals should be treated humanely, not as props.”

Actor Josh Gad, who lends his voice to a dog in the film, issued a statement on Twitter saying he has asked the studio and production team for an explanation of what he calls “disturbing images.”

He said that although the finished film is “one of the most beautiful love letters to animals I have ever seen,” he was troubled by the video.

“I am shaken and sad to see any animal put in a situation against its will,” Gad wrote. A publicist for the actor confirmed the post was authentic.
With files from The Canadian Press

https://www.thestar.com/entertainme...-a-dogs-purpose-movie-being-investigated.html

 

[cristycurves]

I saw this on instagram and hope it's not true, however, nothing surprises me anymore. If it is true I hope all those responsible are held to account!!

 

[God]

It's only a movie and I am sure they took the proper precautions. They do know about PETA.

 

[Anto]

It's only a movie and I am sure they took the proper precautions. They do know about PETA.

Watch this clip and tell me he wasn't scared.

 

[cristycurves]

Obviously very scared and people wonder why some dogs then become aggressive, or bite out of the blue. Trauma leaves a mark on animals not just people. Stupid bunch of fucktards, hope they're fined and shut down!!

 

[User-E]

I didn't watch it, but I believe the dog was scared and animals shouldn't be traumatized for our entertainment.

I'd also like to point out that many dogs react with fear every time you say the word 'bath'.

 

[Oilcan]

Considering the subject matter and audience of the film, that's pretty fucked up.

I mean I'm sure the dog wasn't in danger of drowning, but I'd never force my doggah into water she's terrified of like that

I probably wasn't going to ever watch the movie anyways.

 

[ASAP]

Not cool, but hardly animal abuse. My dog did this every time we tried to put her in the tub too

 

[WhiteLion]

Next time my dog doesn't want to do something I will just bring him back to his domain and make him relax after a treat.

 

[Goodfella]

This is a thread about an animal aparently being abused during a making of a feature film. Lasse Hallstrom is a well known director. The film distributor is one of the biggest in the industry. The sets are monitored by the American Humane Society who have already taken action against their representative on set who should have seen this. Let's not get sidetracked by the sorts of sick videos circulating on social media showing animal abuse. They're unregulated and quite a different thing.

Dogs made an evolutionary decision to partner with man for mutual benefits. They're predisposed to teamwork. When an owner spends time developing skills with a dog the dog's general behaviour improves. They like purpose. I am more worried about pet dogs that are essentially an ornament within a family. They get fed, walked and petted but too often lack being given any mental stimulation.

 

[cristycurves]

Quote}- Dogs made an evolutionary decision to partner with man for mutual benefits.
?? Not sure they'd agree. There are breeds that love water and take to it like a duck, why wouldn't they have chosen one of those breeds. There is no excuse for traumatizing a dog in this manner. It's not responsible training, beneficial nor is it mental stimulation. This is scaring the dog into doing something it doesn't want to do and this type of treatment has negative and residual affects. A human can force an animal to do just about anything, but most responsible humane trainers don't consider "force" reasonable or kind treatment. animals trained this way are always the ones that "out of the blue" bite, become aggressive, become flighty or display other negative or dangerous and spontaneous behaviors. Then the breed, or species is blamed, not the irresponsible training methods or trainer. It's funny we empathize with those who've suffered trauma and then commit a crime because of the trauma, yet when an animal does, we simply blame it.......Hmmmmmm:no:

 

[Madman]

They need Ceasar Milan on the set. The Dog Whisper would have that pooch playing in the pool in no time.

[video]https://video.search.yahoo.com/yhs/search;_ylt=A0LEVvBXHoJYryAAQN8nnIlQ;_ylu=X3oDMTBy MjB0aG5zBGNvbG8DYmYxBHBvcwMxBHZ0aWQDBHNlYwNzYw--?p=Best+Cearar+Milan&fr=yhs-mozilla-004&hspart=mozilla&hsimp=yhs-004#id=8&vid=4fda7786f034b358f2f245be83f6e659&acti on=view[/video]

 

[Maurice Boscorelli]

I didn't like what I saw at the end of the video.

Pretty obvious that the dog was actually going under the water as people were rushing to his aid.

That's abuse and cruel in my books and should be dealt with.

 

[Martin]

Really not cool at all.

 

[cristycurves]

They need Ceasar Milan on the set. The Dog Whisper would have that pooch playing in the pool in no time.

[video]https://video.search.yahoo.com/yhs/search;_ylt=A0LEVvBXHoJYryAAQN8nnIlQ;_ylu=X3oDMTBy MjB0aG5zBGNvbG8DYmYxBHBvcwMxBHZ0aWQDBHNlYwNzYw--?p=Best+Cearar+Milan&fr=yhs-mozilla-004&hspart=mozilla&hsimp=yhs-004#id=8&vid=4fda7786f034b358f2f245be83f6e659&acti on=view[/video]

He is not that well liked by many dog enthusiasts and trainers. Many of his training methods are thought to be to aggressive, even cruel. Flooding is one for example, which the training method of this Sheppard could be considered. Flooding is when you make a dog do something over and over until it stops resisting. Like I said before, an animal will do what we want it to, if forced. But why would anybody want their animal to act out of fear, wouldn't it be better to train them to want to do something, willingly

 

[Siodd]

Don't they use stunt dogs to do these parts?.





[h=1]'A DOG'S PURPOSE' PRODUCERSGERMAN SHEPHERD IS FINE, WASN'T FORCED TO FILM[/h]
https://www.tmz.com/2017/01/18/a-dogs-purpose-german-shepherd-is-okay-not-forced-to-film/

 

[User-E]

Movie watchdog group says 'A Dog's Purpose' video was 'misleading'

Video that appeared to show a frightened German shepherd being forced to swim during filming of “A Dog’s Purpose” was misleading, according to the watchdog organization that certifies that “no animals were harmed” during TV and movie shoots.

American Humane says in a news release that an independent, third-party investigation into the filming which took place in Winnipeg in 2015, determined the video was “deliberately edited for the purpose of misleading the public and stoking outrage.”

The minute-long clip showed a trainer trying to put a resistant German shepherd named Hercules into a turbulent pool and the dog scrambling out.

A subsequent scene showed the dog becoming submerged in the water for several seconds as trainers shout “Stop!”

American Humane says the investigation confirmed preliminary findings that the two scenes shown in the edited video were filmed at different times and that the first scene was stopped after the dog showed signs of stress.

It says the dog was not forced to swim in the water at any time.

“The dog was selected for his love of the water, and had been professionally trained and conditioned for the water scenes over the course of six weeks, using positive training techniques,” the news release from American Humane states.

“During the last scene, handlers immediately assisted the dog out of the water, at which point he was placed in a warming tent and received an examination that found no signs of stress. Eyewitnesses report that the dog wanted to go back in the water. Still, out of an abundance of caution, American Humane stopped filming of any more scenes with the dog.”

https://www.680news.com/2017/02/04/movie-watchdog-group-says-dogs-purpose-video-misleading/

 

[Softie]

Movie watchdog group says 'A Dog's Purpose' video was 'misleading'

Video that appeared to show a frightened German shepherd being forced to swim during filming of “A Dog’s Purpose” was misleading, according to the watchdog organization that certifies that “no animals were harmed” during TV and movie shoots.

American Humane says in a news release that an independent, third-party investigation into the filming which took place in Winnipeg in 2015, determined the video was “deliberately edited for the purpose of misleading the public and stoking outrage.”

The minute-long clip showed a trainer trying to put a resistant German shepherd named Hercules into a turbulent pool and the dog scrambling out.

A subsequent scene showed the dog becoming submerged in the water for several seconds as trainers shout “Stop!”

American Humane says the investigation confirmed preliminary findings that the two scenes shown in the edited video were filmed at different times and that the first scene was stopped after the dog showed signs of stress.

It says the dog was not forced to swim in the water at any time.

“The dog was selected for his love of the water, and had been professionally trained and conditioned for the water scenes over the course of six weeks, using positive training techniques,” the news release from American Humane states.

“During the last scene, handlers immediately assisted the dog out of the water, at which point he was placed in a warming tent and received an examination that found no signs of stress. Eyewitnesses report that the dog wanted to go back in the water. Still, out of an abundance of caution, American Humane stopped filming of any more scenes with the dog.”

https://www.680news.com/2017/02/04/movie-watchdog-group-says-dogs-purpose-video-misleading/

Good to hear. PETA can keep on looking at chickens.

 

[cristycurves]

Peta should keep on looking at chickens and every other animal it deems is being mistreated, and I'm grateful for them doing so.. Without it's intervention how'd any of us know of this video and what goes on in movie sets with animals. Although The HOA (American humane org) found that the video, as "they're saying", was edited in a way as to fool the public into thinking the dog was harmed, How do we know their findings are truthful. Since they are the ones who certify and watch over the animals. I still question the treatment of that dog.


It turns out that certification is granted by The American Humane Association Film and Television Unit, which is responsible for providing protection for film animals on set. For a movie, TV show or commercial to receive the AHA’s certification that “no animals were harmed” during filming, an AHA Certified Animal Safety Representative, who has gone through extensive training, needs to be on site to oversee all animal activity. All Screen Actors Guild productions are required to have one of these representatives on site if an animal is involved in the shoot. This representative is allowed access to every scene where animals appear and has the right to intervene at any point on a film animal’s behalf.

As a SAG film, A Dog’s Purpose had a safety representative on set to oversee all of the scenes with dog actors, to ensure the canines were safe. In response to the recent footage leaked from the set featuring Hercules the German Shepherd, the AHA has placed the representative responsible for overseeing the film on administrative leave and is bringing in a third party to investigate the events shown in the video.

“American Humane has reviewed the video and we are disturbed and concerned by the footage,” the AHA told PEOPLE in a statement. “When the dog showed signs of resistance to jumping in the water, the scene should have been stopped.”

The AHA’s Film and Television Unit started in 1940, in response to a stunt in the 1939 film Jesse James, which sent a stuntman and a horse over a 70-foot cliff into a raging river. The stuntman survived the jump with no injuries; the horse broke its back and died. Since 1940, the AHA has been given the authority to monitor all movie productions with animal actors and has, over time, evolved to oversee all filmed media. The AHA has strict guidelines, which have also evolved with animal welfare legislation, that filmed media must meet or exceed to receive the AHA disclaimer “No Animals Were Harmed” in the credits, which is issued after a final screening and cross-check of the piece.

To receive this certification, film media — including animal actors — must pass all of the standards listed in the AHA’s Guidelines for the Safe Use of Animals in Filmed Media, which is an extensive list of over 500 guidelines that AHA representatives are tasked to enforce while working on filmed media. The guidelines cover the piece from pre-production to release and promotion, and include restrictions for makeup, transportation, shelter, weather, stunts, training and more, all in an effort to protect animal actors from both physical and emotional harm.

However, Lora Dunn, a senior staff attorney with the Animal Legal Defense Fund, tells PEOPLE that while the AHA guidelines represent humane standards of care, overall its power is “mostly hollow” and limited in how it can protect animals. This is because there are no federal laws in place to protect animal actors. Instead, the legal protection of animals in film is controlled by the animal cruelty laws of the state where the filming takes place.

 

[Dan]

It's getting ridiculous how animals are being glorified into almost human status. I'm sorry but most squawking are city slickers who have no idea of living on a farm and actually growing up among animals. I guess if a dog catches a squirrel and rips it apart, it should be considered murder and the dog locked up? I mean after all human status comes with human ramifications no?