Converging on the kennels, they discover the creature – now a bloated and pulsating blob of flesh with a second gruesome dog head on top – in the process of digesting and assimilating the dogs. After MacReady fails to kill it using a shotgun, the creature grows a pair of three-fingered claws and pulls a portion of itself towards the ceiling, separating itself from the main bio-mass and escapes into the ceiling. Confronted by a flamethrower-wielding Childs, the remaining Thing splits open and aims a flower-like proboscis in his direction. It is incinerated before it can strike and collapses to the floor, where the men extinguish the flames. Later, Blair performs an autopsy on the monster and discovers a partially assimilated dog within – granting the men a better understanding of how the Thing operates.
In the opening scenes of 1982s The Thing, the dog reaches a nearby American research station known as Outpost 31. Both its pursuers are killed in an altercation with the stations crew, and consequently its true identity remains a secret. Left to roam around the facility unhindered, the imitation silently assimilates its first victim before Clark, the stations dog-handler, puts the dog in the kennel. Under the cover of darkness, its head splits into a three-jawed maw and spits against nearest dog with a jet of fluid, then mutates into a grotesque spider-like form and begins to violently assimilate the sled dogs. Clark notices the strange noises and goes to check on the dogs, only to be startled by two that manage to escape. Shortly afterwards, helicopter pilot R.J. MacReady also notices the commotion and wakes the men up using the fire alarm system.
The origins of the Dog-Thing are explored in the 2011 prequel to John Carpenters The Thing. It is shown to be an imitation of (presumably) the stations sole dog, which belonged to Norwegian dog-handler, Lars. After the original creature escapes from its ice block in Thule Station it attacks the dog in its kennel. The dog is later found in a bloody mess in the corner of its cage by several Norwegian team members during their search for the creature. Due to their lack of knowledge of the Things life-cycle, the dogs remains were left alone and its whereabouts were largely unknown throughout the Thule crisis. It is only at the end that the dog, now assimilated, is seen by Lars leaping out of a window and running away from the destroyed station. He recognizes that it is an imitation and pursues it across Antarctica with helicopter pilot, Matias.
The Kennel-Thing is shown to possess a minimum of three distinct forms: Imitating a dog from the Norwegian research station, the Thing stealthily assimilates a member of U.S. Outpost 31, before being locked in the stations dog kennel by the unsuspecting men. The creature splits open, developing a prehensile tongue, several spider-like legs and tentacles. Eventually it develops a second head and becomes bloated and immobile. Bloated and pulsating, the Thing develops a pair of claws and escapes to the ceiling. Its flesh rips open to reveal a flower-like appendage composed of canine tongues and teeth. The Norwegian dog prepares to attack the other dogs The Norwegian dog-Thing Sculpting and building the Kennel-Thing In the workshop
The Thing (1982) : The Thing (2011) (Sorry, I forgot put these death scenes in order)
Does the dog die in little things?
No dogs die. Yes, and it’s terrible, BUT John Wick spends the rest of the movie deliberately, gloriously, and violently avenging the dog, so it feels really pro-dog overall.
The Thing Dog Transformation Scene | The Thing (1982)
The dogs were very carefully handled and protected from harm throughout the film. The level of care for the animals is evident in producer Stuart Cohens statements:
Here, Cohen is explaining why the shot of the dog-Thing spraying fluid on a sled dog is looped. As Carpenter says in the commentary track, the fluid is actually a food additive found in Twinkies. The dog was sprayed for a second or so, and the film was then looped to extend the shot, because Carpenter didnt want to cause the dog any more discomfort than was absolutely necessary.
1:25: The dog hops up onto the wall of the cage; there is no hole in the fence.
1:33-1:34: The camera moves back to the fence; there is a hole now, but the dog isnt visible.
1:34-1:35: The dog hops up again, tugs on the fence, seems to break off a piece of it, then hops down again.