"A Dog's Purpose" Set Footage Shows Alleged Animal Cruelty

BALTIMORE (WJZ)-- "A Dog's Purpose" is a upcoming movie based on the best-selling novel by W. Bruce Cameron but video obtained by TMZ has been drawing criticism, according to CBS News.

The video shows an animal trainer forcing a terrified German shepherd into a pool of raging water, while the animal tries to escape. It's the filmmakers' attempt to recreate a scene from the book, where a police K-9 named Ellie rescues someone from a rushing river.

Sources connected to the production reportedly told TMZ that eight outboard motors were used to churn the water.

In the video, as the trainer struggles to drop the dog into the water, a voice can be heard saying, "He ain't gonna calm down 'til he goes in the water. Just got to throw him in."

The trainer succeeds in getting the dog into the water, but pulls the dog back up onto the platform by his collar.

The dog struggles to swim through the water on the other end of the pool and goes under. Filmmakers can heard shouting, "Cut it!"

Universal Pictures and Amblin Partners have now seen the video and tell TMZ that, "Fostering a safe environment and ensuring the ethical treatment of our animal actors was of the utmost importance to those involved in making this film, and we will look into the circumstances surrounding this video."

PETA, however, isn't buying it. In a statement, PETA Senior Vice President Lisa Lange told CBS News:

"Days after PETA released a video exposé of Hollywood animal supplier Birds & Animals Unlimited (BAU), which claimed to a PETA eyewitness they provided dogs used in the film 'A Dog's Purpose,' new footage shows a terrified dog who is forced into churning water on set. At one point, a dog who is in danger of drowning has to be rescued. PETA is calling on dog lovers to boycott the film in order to send the message that dogs and other animals should be treated humanely, not as movie props. PETA's investigation at BAU revealed that animals are denied veterinary care, forced to sleep outdoors in the cold without bedding for warmth, made to live in filthy conditions and more."

PETA's motto reads, in part, that "animals are not ours to use for entertainment."