Spoiler Alert

Does the Dog Die?

Do you turn off Old Yeller before the end so you can pretend that he lived a long and happy life? Did a cute pet on a movie poster make you think it would be a fun comedy but it turned out to be a pet-with-a-terminal-illness tearjerker instead? Are you unable to enjoy the human body count in a horror movie because you’re wondering whether the dog’s going to kick the bucket? Have you ever Googled “Does the [dog/cat/horse/Klingon targ] die in [movie title]?”

I imagine this is useful if you are trying to avoid tears and wailing in young ‘uns.

Funny thing is that there are movies where concern for an animal’s well-being is far from the main focus, and might be considered a little strange, like The Godfather. Or there’s Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, which has a happy face because Indiana the dog is OK, but acknowledges that rats are torched and birds collide with a plane.