Tippet Pipit, the happy black Labrador Retriever.
Most people seem to get more upset by animal deaths than fellow humans. You yell "that shark ate some guy!" and people go "huh...wha?" You yell "that shark ate my dog!" and you've got a panic on your hands at the ASPCA and The Humane Society.
I always thought the dog was called 'pippet' (perhaps I'm wrong?) But either way, I agree with your assessment.
shareIt was definitely called "Tippet(t?)". Named after the British composer Michael Tippett, perhaps? Maybe Spielberg asked John Williams to give the dog a name, and that is what he came up with. Or maybe just a coincidence, although that is a fairly odd name to give a dog.
shareWhy does everyone believe that Pippet fell prey to the shark?
Animals have a keen sense of impending danger; for example, they get skittish before earthquakes and storms. A few years ago, an adult bear was spotted in the neighborhood where my friend and his wife lived. They personally didn't see the bear, but their two dogs were spooked and didn't want to go for their walks. After the police shot the bear, the dogs were back to their normal behavior.
After Pippet's owner tossed that stick into the ocean that last time, I can imagine Pippet thinking, "Uh-oh, there's something creepy in that water. See you later, stick; I'm outta here ..." I think it's quite plausible that Pippet just ran off somewhere, and later came out to join his (her?) owner when the danger was over.
The stick floating in the water while Pippet is no where around still effectively foreshadows the impending menace of the shark; only I would add that this menace was clear to Pippet in ways that humans can't intuit, thus causing him (her?) to take cover.
Let's be honest here. That dog would have probably met its' demise by car or something if the shark hadn't got it. That owner just wasn't watching the dog.
shareThe stick floating was the very clear confirmation that the shark got him.
shareNo, it was the very clear confirmation of the shark’s impending arrival, causing Pippet to abandon the game of fetch.
The floating stick is no less a chilling foreboding of peril even if Pippet survives. Pippet’s animal instincts kicked in, thus saving him/her. Unfortunately for us humans, we don’t possess that sixth sense. Danger was lurking for the beach goers of Amity.
Some say Pippet was so shook up by the floating stick incident that he/she took refuge with a new family on the beach, and lived in happiness to a ripe old age.
shareNo, that's just a fantasy that people choose to believe. If the dog survived, they would've had a scene later of it bounding into it's owners arms eventually.
shareIf the dog survived, they would've had a scene later of it bounding into it's owners arms eventually.
If the dog survived, they would've had a scene later of it bounding into it's owners arms eventually.
I just choose to interpret that Pippet escaped
I think Pippet’s fate is deliberately meant to be unresolved
Sure, I can grasp that the shark may have gotten him; but it’s also not beyond the realm of possibility that the dog was spooked and would not go into the water. It would be fantasy if Pippet sprouted wings and flew off into a pink cloud. But running off because he had an animal’s instinct for danger? Perfectly possible and plausible.
shareIf the dog survived, they would've had a scene later of it bounding into it's owners arms eventually.
but it’s also not beyond the realm of possibility that the dog was spooked and would not go into the water.
Of course the dog went into the water; who says he didn’t? But after a few fetches, he sensed danger and wouldn’t go in again.
That’s what I want to think anyway. I just can’t accept the thought of poor Pippet becoming a shark snack when it’s entirely possible that his instincts saved him.
Your bias is clouding your judgement.
sharePipit's disappearance wasn't because he fled out of fear. It wasn't any boating accident. It wasn't any propeller. It wasn't any coral reef. And it wasn't Jack the Ripper. It was a shark!
shareMr. Ccr, what we are dealing with here is a perfect engine, er... an eating machine. It's really a miracle of evolution. All Pipit does is swim and eat and make little Pipits and that's all.
shareLove to prove that wouldn't you? Get your picture on the cover of Dogster magazine...
shareIf we make an effort now we might be able to save August!
shareI just found out that a cat got killed here last week. And you knew it. you knew there was a shark out there. you knew it was dangerous and you let people go swimming anyway. you knew all those things... but still my dog is dead now. And there is nothing you can do about it.
My dog is dead. I wanted you to know that.
I don’t care, Lady. I drink too much, let my kids play on dangerous swing sets and I frequently put zinc oxide on my nose. Ok?
share"Animals have a keen sense of impending danger; for example, they get skittish before earthquakes and storms."
I'm guessing you've never seen a nature show. Animals eat other animals all the time and while there's always a struggle between predator and prey, there's no reason that a dog in the water would not be vulnerable to a shark, especially THIS shark.
If your assertion were true that "animals have a keen sense of impending danger" with the implication that this is evidence the dog survived, then no predator would ever catch any prey and the entire food chain would collapse.
Yes, animals can sense danger. No, that doesn't indicate in any way that the dog would have survived.
If your assertion were true that "animals have a keen sense of impending danger" with the implication that this is evidence the dog survived, then no predator would ever catch any prey and the entire food chain would collapse.
The movie does seem to imply that the shark took the dog. If he was spooked, he would have run back to his owner.
shareI don't recall the shark killing a dog. And the scene doesn't even make sense since dogs don't live in the ocean
shareWhy don't you go over and sit at the kiddie table, and let the adults talk? 🙄
So go ahead and tell me about this dog that lives and swims in the ocean. I'll listen all the way from the kiddie table
shareI see what you did there… and I love you for it lol
sharePipit was definitely eaten by the shark. He was probably swallowed whole. I believe Spielberg has addressed this before.
shareStick floating is a huge indicator the dog was eaten. Otherwise, why show it floating in the water? Why show the dog at all? It's a clear foreshadowing that the shark is there.
shareWhen the boy was attacked by the shark, EVERYONE knew. It was horrific. Sure the dog was a bit smaller than the boy but the same scene would have happened. All we see is a stick floating. I doubt the dog would have dove deep and been gulped while fetching a stick. It's all fiction and they leave it up to our imaginations. If people choose to believe the dog was eaten alive, so be it. I personally believe the dog steered clear.
shareYes! We think alike ^
sharePlot twist - Pipet ate Alex Kintner at the beach.
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