Impressive Pet Tricks 003: Uggie the Jack Russell Terrier

You may have heard of a 10-year-old Jack Russell terrier named Uggie, seeing as he is a world famous moive star. Uggie is owned and was trained by Omar von Muller, the same individual who trained Jumpy the Border Collie/Heeler mix I profiled in a post from 7/17/2013. Uggie is most famous for his co-starring role in the 2011 film The Artist. Uggie's last role was a cameo (playing himself) in the film The Campaign, starring Will Ferrell and Zach Galifianakis. Will Ferrell attempts to punch Zach Galifianakis but misses and punches Uggie instead.

Uggie's Wikipedia page says that he "was rejected by at least his first two owners as being too wild", and that "he was about to be sent to a dog pound" before being adopted by animal trainer Omar Von Muller. In addition to numerous commercials, Uggie has appeared in 6 feature films. Uggie won the 11th annual Palm Dog Award for best performance by a canine at the 2011 Cannes Film Festival, for his role as "Jack" in The Artist. On June 25 2012, Uggie was the first dog ever to be invited to immortalize his pawprints in cement outside Grauman's Chinese Theatre in Hollywood Boulevard. The City of Los Angeles declared the date Uggie Day.

The Wikipedia entry for Jack Russells notes that they are "an energetic breed that relies on a high level of exercise and stimulation" and that the breed originates "from dogs bred and used by Reverend John Russell in the early 19th century". Regarding longevity, Wikipedia says "Jack Russells can live anywhere from between 13 to 16 years on average".

Video1: Omar von Muller and Uggie appear on the The Better Show to discuss Uggie's life, film career and biography, Uggie: My Story. The Better Show gets its name from it's distributor's (the Meredith Corporation) flagship publication, Better Homes and Gardens. The Better Show is co-hosted by Audra Lowe and JD Roberto from studios in Midtown Manhattan (4:48).

Video2: Uggie appears on The Ellen DeGeneres Show with his owner & trainer Omar von Muller, 1/17/2012. Video posted to YouTube on 1/18/2012 (2:12).

Video3: Uggie and Dash ride their skateboards. Video posted to YouTube on 3/17/2011 (1:43).

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Impressive Pet Tricks 002: Bunny The Diving Chocolate Lab

Bunny is a rescue Lab currently being fostered by Tami Stanley of Eluess Texas. Bunny is a female Chocolate Labrador Retriever who is aproximately one year old. The description for this YouTube video says "Bunny the lab is making a splash on the Web. The rescue dog has been getting attention for a video that shows off her swimming skills fetching toys at the bottom of a 13-foot-deep pool".

According to Stanley, she "first discovered Bunny's skill when she was in the pool holding a toy underwater. Bunny held her breath, swam by and snagged the toy". The Petfinder page created for Bunny says she is "funny and sweet", "fabulous with other dogs", and "on the smaller size". I found a video on the USA Today website that says Bunny is described on her Petfinder page as "not the brightest dog". Apparently Texas Labrador Retriever Rescue Inc decided agaisnt denigrating poor Bunny's intelligence and changed the wording. The Petfinder ad now describes Bunny as "silly".

Regarding Chocolate Labs, Wikipedia says, "the origins of all Chocolate labradors listed on the LabradorNet database (some 34,000 Labrador dogs of all shades) to eight original bloodlines. These bloodlines each lead back to three black Labradors in 1880s Newfoundland. Labradors are relatively large, with males typically weighing 64-90lb and females 55-71lb. The life expectancy for Labs is generally 10 to 12 years".

Video Description: Bunny dives to the bottom of a 13 foot pool to retrieve a toy. It is quite rare for a dog to be able to hold it's breath for long periods of time underwater. Video posted to YouTube on 7/16/2013 (2:01).

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Impressive Pet Tricks 001: Jumpy the Border Collie/Heeler Mix

Jumpy is a 4 year old male Border Collie/Heeler mix trained by Omar von Muller. In the comment section for the first YouTube video below one viewer asks if Jumpy has ever been injured performing a trick. Omar responds by writing, "No, as dangerous as they look... if he looses the scooter or skateboard at a high speed he just runs with it like nothing. All the other jumps etc were done one step at a time and never an accident".

Uggie the Jack Russell Terrier - famous for his co-starring role in the 2011 film The Artist - is another canine trained by von Muller. I presume that Jumpy is a star in his own right, but could not find any information regarding any acting gigs (a Google search returned only results that included the video below).

Video1: Jumpy performs various tricks, including riding a scooter standing on his two hind legs down a hill! 6/30/2013 (2:05).

Video2: Jumpy winks on command. Video posted to YouTube on 9/3/2011 (1:00).

Video3: [ADDED 10/27/2016] Re Jumpy acting gigs, he is co-starring in 2016's In the Valley of Violence with Ethan Hawke. and Ethan Hawke as a drifter named "Paul" and Jumpy as his dog, "Abbie" (1:11).

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