Top Ten Best Dogs in Film and Television History (Inspired by Barbara Streisand’s Cloned Pups!)

“Send in the Clones,” Barbara Streisand says as she announces in an interview with Variety about the origins of her two new pups, Miss Violet and Miss Scarlett. These four legged friends are both clones of her age old companion Samantha, a Coton du Tulear who passed away last May. Streisand navigated a tricky ethical gray spot and shelled out a substantial amount of money in an effort to recreate the bond she had with her canine companion Samantha.

When the first Buzzfeed notification appeared in that small rectangle on the top of my phone screen, informing me that the Yentl star had cloned her pet, I wasn’t sure what emotion to feel. Shock at the absurdity of the headline? Disgust at the questionable ethics of her actions? Appreciation and awe at the fact that Barbra just did that? And as all these thoughts and questions raced through my mind, they eventually all filtered down to a different conversation. I began to think about Hollywood and its relationship with animals, specifically dogs.

A former Pixar animator and Disney Creative Executive I met once said that unconditional love is held for three things: women, children and dogs. This cultural and societal obsession and adoration with dogs can be seen across media platforms ranging from memes on twitter and cute dog compilation videos on YouTube, to film franchises based solely on the public’s obsession with man’s best friend. This line of thought sparked by Streisand and her puppy love and general intrigue with this collective cultural idolatry of ‘doggos’ we are seeing in today’s media landscape has made me think about representations of dogs in the media. There are now even dog based award shows such as The Fidos – For Incredible Dogs on Screen – which are dedicated to celebrating the finest cinematic contributions by canines. So now I am here and ready to give you the definitive ranking of the best dogs in film and television history.

10. Benji

The titular character’s role was originated by a shelter dog named Higgens. His pups then went on to play him in the sequels.  Talk about keeping it in the family!

9. Winn-Dixie

Much like Mary-Kate and Ashely Olson in the cult classic television phenomenon Full House, the 2005 hit adaption of children’s classic Because of Winn-Dixie, had Picardy Sheperds, Lyco and Scott, share role of the mischievous young pup. The only difference here being that there definitely were two of them. Don’t know if we can say the same for the Olson twins.

8. Lassie

Lassie’s tale is an inspirational one of a young Rough Collie who found stardom in the face of adversity after living life as an unwanted pup.

7. Jerry Lee

A lovely police dog names Koton plays the infamous German Shepherd Jerry Lee who played the titular canine in the 1989 action comedy K-9.  Koton was shot and killed in an attempted arrest in November of 1991.

6. Cujo

The thrilling Steven King adaptation used multiple Saint Bernard’s throughout the duration of the film and even used shots of Rottweilers because they felt that the Saint Bernard’s could not emote the anger and viciousness needed for the scenes.

5. Old Yeller

Old Yeller was played by a homeless mutt named Spike found in a shelter in Van Nuys. He almost didn’t get the part because the cast felt he was too much of a good boy for the role.

4. Toto

Terry, the Cairn Terrier, knew they weren’t in Kansas anymore. He just didn’t have the heart to break it to her.

3. Buddy

You could say that Buddy, star of the wildly successful Air Bud, which went on to build a small empire of a franchise with hits such as Air Buddies and Snow Buddies, was born for the role with his actual name being Buddy. He is also quite the prolific pup and is known for his stand out role as Comet in Full House.

2. Beethoven

The massive eponymous St. Bernard was played by a 200 pound dog named Kris.

1. Marley

The dog Marley from the film Marley and Me was actually played by 18 different dogs. It’s crazy to think that the emotional bonds that audiences across the world formed with this dog and his emotional story arc that left people in literal tears and fits of ugly crying in dim lit movie theaters was never really a singular bond at all. They didn’t even realize that the dog they fell in love with wasn’t even the same dog throughout the movie or the one we see have his emotional farewell at the end.