Today marks the local premier of the Lass Hallstrom movie "A Dog's Purpose," but recent allegations of animal abuse on the movie set may keep some dog lovers from buying a ticket.

A leaked video from the movie set showed a German Shepherd named Hercules allegedly being forced to jump into churning water while visibly resisting. While most animal lovers would balk at the situation, some aren't so sure that the public has the whole story."When I first saw it, I wanted to see what actually happened," Carbon County animal cruelty officer Donna Crum said. "A lot of videos that are put online aren't the actual footage, or they might be edited."Based on the 2010 novel of the same name by W. Bruce Cameron, "A Dog's Purpose" revolves around a canine's trek from puppyhood to passing to reincarnation, and his mission to find a purpose in life.Many viewers were shaken by the video clip, calling out the American Humane Association - which is responsible for ensuring animal safety on film sets - for their supposed negligence concerning the animal's safety. The AHA representative on set was subsequently suspended, and the association reports that a third-party investigation is ongoing.SkepticismHowever, some animal aficionados like Crum are skeptical about the footage - especially when it comes to the source of the leak and the intent."The first group that put the video out was PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals), and that's why I questioned it," Crum said. "They have the highest euthanasia rate of any animal group in the country."It is true that PETA is no stranger to controversy. Support for more volatile activist groups like Animal Liberation Front - who have been linked to some incidents of nonfatal domestic terrorism - in addition to advertisements featuring nude models or violent images are familiar territory for the group.Animal trainers attached to the movie, as well as star Dennis Quaid, have called the legitimacy of the video into question as well, with both parties saying that the leaked footage could have been edited."I would not be on a set that had any kind of abuse toward animals ―any animals ―or people. ... I don't think this video tells the whole story," Quaid said on The Ellen Show.The author speaksEven Cameron issued an official statement on the incident on his Facebook page, saying that he reviewed the footage of the day in question and "it paints an entirely different picture" than the video that was leaked."The written commentary accompanying the edited video mischaracterizes what happened," he wrote. "The dog was not terrified and not thrown in the water - I've seen footage of Hercules earlier that day joyfully jumping in the pool. When he was asked to perform the stunt from the other side of the pool, which was not how he had been doing it all day, he balked."The mistake was trying to dip the dog in the water to show him it was OK - the water wasn't his issue, it was the location that was the issue, and the dog happily did the stunt when he was allowed to return to his original spot."I also didn't like it when Hercules's head briefly went under water, but there was a scuba diver and a trainer in the pool to protect him. He loves the water, wasn't in danger, and wasn't upset."On a movie where the mantra was the safety and comfort of the dogs, mistakes were made, and everything needs to be done to make sure those errors are not repeated. But the reason American Humane certifies that no animals were harmed during the making of the film is that no animals were harmed during the making of the film."Prior practicesMany people are calling the role of the AHA into question, with a 2001 report from the L.A. Times citing multiple incidents of abuse in several films, conflicts of interest when it comes to agency representatives and studios, and more.Though controversial, this type of problem is nothing new. Going all the way back to the infancy of cinema, Thomas Edison's "Electrocuting an Elephant" actually depicted the death of Topsy the elephant at Coney island. More recently, animal handlers from "The Hobbit" announced that 27 animals died during the making of the film, including two horses, six goats, six sheep, a dozen chickens, and a miniature pony."When you're dealing with animals, you never know how they are going to react in certain situations, in real life or on a movie set," Crum said. "Although, personally, I wouldn't put my dog in that situation."The fact is, in just about any circumstance - whether in everyday life or on a movie set - enforcing the protection of animals is a tricky business.Crum gave an example of a person reporting a neighbor's dog chained to a post in a yard on a hot day. While the person calling the animal cruelty officer may have the safety of the animal in mind, they may not be aware that the owner had just let the dog out for a few minutes of exercise."The animal laws in this country are bad," Crum said. "They're very open to interpretation, vague, ambiguous. It's difficult to press charges for cruelty, neglect and abuse."While many animal lovers were shocked by the clip, they won't outright boycott or protest the movie - at least until the investigation is complete."The dog could have been nervous because there was a lot of people on the set, or maybe the dog had done it six times before that, but maybe that time it was tired," Crum said."There are a lot of variables we haven't seen."