Snow Dogs - Trivia, Questions and Fun Facts

[discussimdb]

Fan of Snow Dogs or just want to share your movie knowledge? This topic is dedicated to all trivia and questions related to Snow Dogs

[carl]

During the big race, the team of dogs races around the narrow cliff and the sled goes over the side. The sled and several of the dogs dangle over the edge. The dogs are then pulled back up in slow motion. Several cameras using various angles were used to help simulate the danger of this scene. Trainers hooked the team of dogs to the sled using extra gang lines and harnesses. Trainers stood on either side of the sled as it moved and other trainers and crew members surrounded them. The team was placed on their mark and ropes were attached to the gang lines and the dogs' harnesses. The ropes acted as pulleys and were maneuvered by trainers standing on the other side. On "action," the rope slowly pulled the dogs up and over the side to awaiting trainers who unhooked the dogs and rewarded them with treats.

[beth]

James Coburn died November 18, 2002, exactly 10 months after the film's release.

[nicholas]

In one scene, a skunk crawls on the inside of Ted's car. It sprays Ted. Two skunks were on call for this scene, but a skunk named Flower actually ended up doing the work. Two trainers accompanied the skunks to the set. Flower was placed near the rear window of a Volkswagen car that was on a process trailer being towed by the camera truck. A trainer hidden in the backseat of the car cued the skunk to lift its tail. The spray was a computer generated effect.

[clayton]

Many of the dogs in this movie later went on to appear in Eight Below (2006).

[charlie]

Trainers hooked the Siberian Huskies up to lines called gang lines, which were then attached to the sleds. Because the dogs were always teamed together, they were very comfortable with each other. All of the dogs were used to being hitched to sleds and pulling them in the snow. The snow on the ground was real, although the snow that fell from the sky was not. It came out of a machine and fans placed around the set helped to blow it around to achieve a blizzard effect. The snow drifts and hills that the teams of dogs are shown traversing were all man made and stunt riders and dogs rehearsed these scenes numerous times. Stunt doubles drive the sleds and teams of trainers guided the dogs to run in various directions by running in front of the sled. The dogs only ran a few feet at a time and ran even slower when the paths got curvy. The help of several cameras and various angles helped in the final race scene where the sled appears to go over the side of a cliff. Ted and Nana sit inside a VW car being pulled by a team of dogs. Nana jumps out the window of the makeshift sled while the other disobedient dogs romp in the snow. One dog even stands on top of the parked car. The dogs were hooked up to the car by the trainers, who stood off-camera during filming. The actor sat in the car with Nana the dog. The car was on a process trailer being towed by the camera truck. One trainer hid in the car while another stood off-camera. On a verbal cue, the dog jumps out of the window of the car and a trainer is there to reward the dog. A dog is placed on its mark on top of the parked car and trainers surrounded the car during this shot. The dog was then retrieved by the trainer and rewarded with a treat.

[gerald]

two dogs play tug-of-war over a bone as the other dogs watch them and run to window when Ted drives up. One dog appears in barn with a bone it its mouth as another one eats from a food bowl. The dog with the bone drops it down on the ground and looks for a reaction from the dog that's eating. It stops eating and nudges the bone with its nose as another dog swoops in the scene and grabs the bone. Trainers placed the dogs on their marks and stood off-camera using a combination of verbal cues and hand signals to achieve this action. Trainers standing off-camera verbally cued the dogs to run to the window as Ted pulls up outside.

[ella]

A foreshadowing of Demon's toothache is when he is rummaging through Ted's bag and comes across his toothpaste. Demon steps on the tube, squirting some contents onto the floor, then licks them off.

[terry]

In the early bar scene, Graham Greene is wearing a "Bogey Inn" shirt. Bogey Inn is a golf-themed bar and restaurant in Powell, Ohio, adjacent to the Muirfield Village Golf Club (home of the Memorial Tournament).

[lynn]

Back in Miami, Ted lives next door to a little poodle named Chester, whose incessant barking annoyed the pre-dog-friendly Ted. One day, Ted is out on the balcony and sees Chester next door barking. Ted yells at the dog then takes a sprinkling can with water in it and pours it on the dog. The trainer placed the dog on its mark and stood off-camera using hand signals to get the dog to bark. The actor picked up the sprinkling can, which had some warm water in it and poured it on the dog. The trainer retrieved the dog which was unphased and dried it off. During the opening credits, a girl rollerblades at the beach while holding onto the leash of a dog. A trainer gave the leash to the actress on blades while another trainer ran in front of them calling to the dog, who followed obediently

[nicholas]

During a fantasy/nightmare sequence, Ted's dogs lie on beach chairs with sunglasses on. Each dog had a trainer and was prepped for one month prior to filming. Each dog had its own foam padding which was cut out to fit its hips and back so it could lie on the beach chair and not slip down or tip over. Custom-made bathing suits were made for each dog to wear. The trainers placed the dogs in the chairs and set sunglasses on their faces then stood off camera calling to the dogs to get them to look in various directions. After the scene was filmed, the trainers retrieved the dogs and disrobed them, rewarding each with a treat. All of the mouth movements and facial expressions here and throughout the film were computer generated and edited in during post production.

[wesley]

Demon, Yodel and Sniff, Mack and Diesel, Scooper, Duchess are all Siberian Huskies. Nana is the only one of Lucy's dogs not to be a Siberian Husky, she's a Border Collie.

[darrell]

As an attempt to establish his dominance over Demon, Ted pads his butt with straw and tempts Demon to bite it. Demon sinks his teeth into the seat of Ted's pants and Ted twirls him around. Demon finally lets go and falls onto a bale of hay. A stuntman was brought in to double for the actor in this scene. Along with lots of padding, a treat wrapped inside a towel was put inside the seat of the stuntman's pants to entice the dog to bite the padded part. The dog holds on to the pants as the stuntman drags the dog across the yard and into the barn. The dog was given the treat inside the towel afterwards.

[scarlett]

Out in the icy wilderness, Ted encounters a big brown bear who growls at him and stands up on its hind legs, then chases him. A stuntman doubled for the actor in this scene while two trainers stood off-camera cueing the bear to achieve its action. The bear was rewarded with lots of big treats and hugs.

[amber]

It wasn't hard to get Nana the dog to curl up in bed with Cuba in a later scene. A trainer put the dog on its mark and stood off-camera. To get the dog to lick the actor, some baby food was placed on the area to be licked and the dog happily complied.

[jessie]

Trainers stood off-camera using a combination of hand signals and verbal cues to get the dogs to achieve lots of action throughout the film such as barking, growling, lying down, sitting, standing, and even digging. In one scene, a dog called Scooper begins to dig in the snow as the other dogs lie in the snow and enjoy a much-deserved rest. The dog finally digs up a flask. A trainer buried some treats in the snow near the flask and used a hand signal from off-camera to get the dog to begin digging. Once the dog got scent of the treat, the rest of the scene came naturally to the pooch. After the scene was filmed, the other dogs also received edible rewards for a job well done.

[elmer]

American Humane Association monitored the animal action. No animals were harmed in the making of this film. (AHA 00177)

[gabriel]

Ted's dogs are inside looking out the window of their home. Nana, the mutt, scratches at the window, while Demon jumps up on hay bales between two of the dogs. Bales of hay were placed next to the window. The dogs were placed on their marks on the hay bales by trainers. Two trainers hid inside and seven others stood outside the windows using verbal cues to get the dogs to look in different directions. The dog that played Demon was verbally cued by a trainer hiding inside the barn to jump up on the bales between two dogs that were already seated by the window. Nana was also verbally cued to paw at the window by a trainer.