Protecting Animal Actors

At the end of a movie, television program or even a commercial, you may see the “No animals were harmed” credit, which is issued only by the American Humane Association. The credit is common today in Hollywood, but a tragic history lies behind it.

Since 1877, the American Humane Association has fought for animal welfare. But it had little power when it came to the filming of animals. That changed in 1939, with a film called “Jesse James.” In the movie (starring Henry Fonda and Randolph Scott), a horse and rider jumped off a cliff into a rushing river. In the next scene, Fonda and a horse are seen swimming in the water.

But in reality, that scene cost that particular horse his life. The horse was forced onto a slippery platform called a “tilt shute,” which was tilted up to force the horse to slip off the cliff. This was just one of many cruel devices used to force animals to fall for the sake of entertainment.

Reforming the Industry


At the time, the MPAA was quite powerful. The organization had been created to essentially censor movies before the government stepped in to do so. Under the conservative Will Hays, the association’s president, the organization wouldn’t allow even the hint that married people slept together (their bedrooms showed separate beds, for instance). In addition, actors and actresses were forced to include “morality clauses” in their contracts.

His influence was such that the movie organization was called the Hays Office. The organization’s power was broken in 1966, when the Supreme Court ruled that the office was in effect practicing censorship. (Incidentally, that year the association introduced the rating system.)



Taking a Stand

Ironically, it took the death of another horse to spur reform. In the 1979 movie Heaven’s Gate, there’s a scene showing a saddle being blown from a horse. According to Karen Rosa, a spokeswoman for the AHA, explosives were apparently placed underneath the saddle. Not surprisingly, the blast severely injured the horse, which had to be euthanized.


The Basics


  • “Animal” means all sentient creatures, including birds, fish, reptiles and insects.The AHA reviews scripts and works with animal trainers months before filming begins. All actions involving animals are carefully analyzed, from the stunts to the lighting and camera angles, to ensure the animals are not at risk. The housing and care facilities are inspected as well.


  • Acceptable movies are given the familiar “No animals were harmed” credit seen at the end of many movies and television programs. This means a representative from the AHA supervised the action on the set.
  • Unacceptable indicates that deliberate cruelty has occurred on the set.A category known as acceptable/unacceptable is also occasionally used. The movie Homeward Bound II: Lost in San Francisco was given this designation because most of the animal actions followed the AHA’s guidelines. However, according to the AHA, a number of fish were not properly cared for and died as a result. The dog and cat action is rated acceptable but the fish action was rated as unacceptable.



    To learn the ratings of a particular movie, you can log onto the AHA’s Web site at An alphabetized list is provided, along with an explanation of the animal action that earned a particular rating.


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