# In Lassie, did anyone ever actually derive information from Lassie’s barking?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-lassie-did-anyone-ever-actually-derive-information-from-lassie-s-barking/1023436>\
**Category:** Cafe Society\
**Tags:** tv-shows-scripted\
**Created:** [September 27, 2025, 7:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-lassie-did-anyone-ever-actually-derive-information-from-lassie-s-barking/1023436 "2025-09-27T19:02:07Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 2

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**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\
**Post date:** [September 28, 2025, 1:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-lassie-did-anyone-ever-actually-derive-information-from-lassie-s-barking/1023436/21 "2025-09-28T13:53:43Z")

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The tradition of Lassie has continued on social media, with people posting videos of a variety of wild animals (deer, weasels, snakes etc.\*) showing up at people’s doorsteps and insisting they come rescue a partner/offspring who’s gotten stuck in a fence or fallen down a hole.

Awhile back on the Dope, there was a thread about posters’ ideas for new TV shows. Mine was “Cadaver Dog”, about the adventures of a lovable beast trained to follow the scent of decomposition. The first episode was called “Timmy’s In The Well”.

\*well, maybe not snakes. But that’ll be next.

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**Author:** ![markn\_1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/f9ae1b/32.png) [@markn\_1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/markn_1)\
**Post date:** [September 28, 2025, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-lassie-did-anyone-ever-actually-derive-information-from-lassie-s-barking/1023436/22 "2025-09-28T15:00:41Z")

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This trope was parodied in _The Jerk_, when Steve Martin’s character interprets a dog’s barking as a warning that there was a fire.

[![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/lKv7aGku2RQ/maxresdefault.jpg "The Jerk (3/10) Movie CLIP - Don't Call That Dog Lifesaver (1979) HD") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lKv7aGku2RQ)

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**Author:** ![betonbill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/b782af/32.png) [@betonbill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/betonbill)\
**Post date:** [September 28, 2025, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-lassie-did-anyone-ever-actually-derive-information-from-lassie-s-barking/1023436/23 "2025-09-28T15:26:00Z")

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“Look. I think she (Lassie) is trying to tell us something.”

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**Author:** ![Dropo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ce7236/32.png) [@Dropo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dropo)\
**Post date:** [September 28, 2025, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/in-lassie-did-anyone-ever-actually-derive-information-from-lassie-s-barking/1023436/24 "2025-09-28T18:40:32Z")

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> [@markn\_1](#):
>
> This trope was parodied in…

_Up the Creek_ (1984) features a spin on the trope.

[![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/iU_DF21hBaI/maxresdefault.jpg "Chuck the Wonder Dog clues - Up the Creek") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iU_DF21hBaI)

That’s canine thespian [Jake - IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm4345646/?ref_=ttfc_fcr_3_41) in the role of “Chuck, the Wonder Dog,” voiced by [Frank Welker - IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0919798/?ref_=ttfc_fcr_3_40).

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