Peter the Great

Death: June 10, 1926

Peter the Great was a remarkably intelligent German-born German shepherd, who after two years of training at the Berlin Police Academy, was brought to Hollywood to perform in movies. In 1926, after appearing in several Hollywood features, Peter was shot and killed during a possible alcohol fueled dispute between his master and another dog fancier. A jury later awarded Peter's owner, who had asked for a quarter of a million dollars, $100,000 plus $25,000 in punitive damages, a record at that time for the slaying of a dog. In 1931 another jury found that "No dog can be considered in the same category as a human" and declared the 1927 damage award as grossly excessive.