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Amazon Prime reportedly canceled The Pack after PETA criticized the show over leaked footage showing dogs swinging down a steep slope and slamming into rocks as they were tied to humans rappelling off a cliff.
The Amazing Race-style series, hosted by Olympian Lindsey Vonn and her dog Lucy, featured humans and their dogs competing in challenges described by the animal rights group as “ dangerous situations, ” a reported The Wrap.
Montage videos on the hall floor, which appear to be taken from a cell phone, show the puppies hanging between their owner’s legs while bumping against the cliff and waving their paws in a desperate attempt to get to safety.
The videos, taken from raw footage, were shot at the 108-foot Los Campesinos Falls in Costa Rica for the show’s third episode, The Wrap reported.
The show was released on Amazon Prime on November 20, and 10 episodes of the show are available to stream. The leaked footage was not used in the episode.
WARNING: EXPLICIT LANGUAGE
Amazon Prime has reportedly canceled its new reality show The Pack after a video of pets repelling a stunt with their owners leaked
Pictures show dogs slamming against a cliff in Costa Rica as they are strapped to harnesses
PETA said it was ‘delighted’ the show was canceled and praised Amazon for making ‘the compassionate decision’
Dog trainers helped teach puppies specific skills needed to participate in show challenges
Amazon had put an emphasis on animal safety in the marketing leading up to the show’s release, including hiring dog trainers who helped design challenges.
Daily Mail has contacted Amazon for confirmation and additional information.
Lewis Crary, PETA’s deputy director of pets in the film and television division, told DailyMail.com the organization was ‘so thrilled that Amazon made the compassionate decision to cancel this show’ ‘.
“Whenever dogs are used for movies and television, they have the short end of the stick. On a set, time is money and the needs of the animals are compromised in the name of assessments, ”said Crary.
Nothing says 2020 like a reality show hanging dogs over waterfalls and swinging them into rock walls. Animals are individuals and they are not props and gadgets to be used on reality TV.
Crary added that the organization was responding to “ disturbing images ” in the loathsome videos, but was also concerned about the possibility of other unused content.
The show is hosted by Olympian skier Lindsey Vonn and her dog Lucy
Vonn, 36, won the gold medal in downhill at the 2010 Olympic Winter Games
“ It’s really the unknown of – if this show was comfortable with that scene then what else we haven’t seen that else Amazon executives know? which forced them to cancel that, ” he said.
“Being part of a backpack means protecting your companion, not strapping it to a harness and helplessly lowering it off a cliff. PETA hopes everyone involved will learn a lesson from Amazon’s images and moment of clarity.
Amazon touted the emphasis on animal safety in marketing leading up to the show’s premiere, according to a report in Variety.
Dog trainers were brought in to teach puppies specific skills needed to compete and were consulted on developing challenges.
“ All the dogs ride in harnesses or crash tested carriers, and we didn’t just put the harnesses on the dogs, ” trainer Nicole Ellis said.
“ We really broke it: showed them a harness, [they] had a treat; showed them a harness, [they] had a treat. It was several steps before they even put on a harness. And that went for the safety glasses, the slippers, the equipment.
Executive producer Jay Bienstock told the outlet that dog safety experts have “ absolute power ” on hand to address concerns.
“If dog safety said, ‘Stop this,’ we would stop. We gave them a pass for everything, ”he said.
Vonn, 36, a downhill ski racer, won the gold medal in downhill at the 2010 Olympic Winter Games – the first for an American. She announced her retirement from professional skiing in 2019, citing injuries.
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