As the TV fell, the trainer cued the dog to get on it and “dig” at it.Ī Chihuahua on a leash stands with a couple waiting for an elevator.
The trainer then cued the dog to come and then to put its paws on the TV and bark. A trainer placed the well-rehearsed dog in a “down-stay” position and stood near the TV, using a “look stick” to get the dog to look at the fake TV. The prop was rigged to a string, which a crew member pulled in a choreographed move to get it to fall down right as the dog placed its front paws on it. This scene was filmed inside an enclosed fake igloo with a fake, lightweight TV prop. The dog then gets up, barks, runs to the screen and knocks the TV over with its paws. Trainers used a buzzer to cue the rat to walk away, and they retrieved the rat right afterward.Īmerican Humane also monitored a scene involving rats in costumes, which was cut from the theatrical release but might come back on DVD.Ī dog lies beside a family watching a big-screen television inside an igloo, staring up at the screen. The rat was cued to put the fake muffin in its mouth and walk off with it. The actor took a bite of a real muffin and then subtly replaced it with a fake muffin.
The well-rehearsed actor threw the prop radio a safe distance away from the rat. Trainers placed the rat on its mark and cued it to stay. The set was an enclosed area and stunt pads and fake trash surrounded the rat. The rat is on a ledge and steals a muffin before walking off. Ian talks to a rat while listening to the radio in a basement, and then throws the radio at the wall. All chipmunk action in this film was computer-generated imagery there were no live chipmunks in the film or on the set.