10 Painfully Emotional Dog Deaths In Movies
2. Where The Red Fern Grows
Where the Red Fern Grows is an overtly sentimental coming-of-age film about a boy and his two Redbone Coonhounds, Old Dan and Little Ann.
After working tirelessly to save up enough money to buy the dogs, our protagonist, Billy (Stewart Petersen), sets about training them to hunt Raccoons. Through their adventures, Billy learns various life lessons, growing wiser over the course of the film.
Alas, the brave Old Dan finds himself on the wrong side of a Mountain Lion, which fatally wounds him. Worse still, the more intelligent dog, Little Ann, is so profoundly traumatised by the death of her companion that she practically gives up on life, eventually dying on top of Old Dans grave.
Despite the remarkable similarities to Old Yeller, Where the Red Fern Grows is a decent film in its own right; the loss of two hardy canines more than makes up for any lack of originality.