Dennis Quaid believes the claims of animal abuse that have tainted his 2017 film "A Dog's Purpose" are nothing but a "scam." In his latest podcast, "The Pet Show," the actor spoke about the controversy that arose after the emergence of a video that appeared to show a scared German shepherd dog being forced into the water by trainers.
The clip sparked outrage, and, as a result, the premiere was cancelled and an internal investigation was launched. Quaid said the whole ordeal was blown out of proportion.
"What happened was the dog jumps into the water … there were divers, scuba divers, three of them, underneath the water," the 66-year-old actor said. "One of the trainers reached down to give the dog a rest, and he pulled him up, and it looks like he's pulling him up and choking him by the collar."
Quaid added that the video did not portray the situation accurately.
"What it doesn't show is that there's a table right below the dog, so the dog can rest his feet on the table. He's not just being held up," he noted.
At one point in the clip, the German shepherd is completely submerged in water. Panicked crew members rush to help the dog, but Quaid assured that there were divers waiting underwater.
"They lifted him up, handed him to the trainer right by the pool and the dog didn't even wait to get a collar on, he ran right to the other side of the pool to do it again. He loved it," he explained.
Quaid previously expressed anger about the video, which he felt was purposely released right before the movie premiere.
"I think it’s a scam, to tell you the truth," he told Entertainment Tonight. "I was there. I never saw any abuse of any animal. If there had been, I would have walked," he added.
Zoe Papadakis ✉
Zoe Papadakis is a Newsmax writer based in South Africa with two decades of experience specializing in media and entertainment. She has been in the news industry as a reporter, writer and editor for newspapers, magazine and websites.
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