Each of the dogs, one a Border Collie and the other a Terrier Mix, had an individual trainer on set. Throughout this film, the dogs are being chased or chasing someone. We also see the dogs performing tasks such as playing piano and checkers, opening doors, jumping up, knocking things over and pushing things with their snouts. The trainers placed the dogs on their marks and used a combination of verbal cues and hand signals to achieve these behaviors. In the beginning of the film we see the dog working the remote control of a toy boat that is in the water. Later, in a scene at Universal Studios Theme Park we see a dog working the control panels of the ride. Both scenes were achieved by the trainer using verbal cues to have the dog put his paw on the controls. In the sequence where the dog jumps into the water and swims with the child, there were two trainers on the set. One trainer released the dog at the side of the pool and it jumped into the water. Another trainer was in the pool and used hand signals to have the dog swim across to him where he lifted the dog out .The dog was verbally cued to shake sending water everywhere as the camera got the shot. The trainer used a combination of verbal cues and hand signals to have the dog pick up the towel and bring it to the boy. When the family is packing up the truck to leave on vacation, the dogs make sure they have all they need for the trip. They are shown bringing lots of toys into the car. One trainer stood off camera and handed each dog a toy and verbally cued them to run to the car with the toy in their mouth. The other trainer hid in the car and took the toys from the dogs as they arrived, then used hand signals to cue the dogs to go back to the other trainer for another toy. There is a scene in which the dogs exit the car to save a drowning man. One dog throws a life preserver in, while the other dog jumps into the water to bring it to the drowning man. One trainer was inside the car with the dog and placed a paw on the door handle. A verbal command was given and the dog pushed on the door handle as the production assistant on the other side opened the door. The dogs were verbally cued to jump out of the car and run to the trainer who stood just off camera. One dog was verbally cued to nudge the life preserver with his snout, as the trainer helped out by pulling the life preserver by a line. When Samson jumped into the water to save the man, he really jumped from one platform to another. The trainer lifted him up onto a two foot high platform and verbally cued him to jump. Although it looks as though the dog is jumping into the water, Samson actually jumped onto a platform that was built just for this scene. The trainers stood next to the platform and handed the dog to the actor who was already in the water. The actor held the dog in his arms as an assistant threw the life preserver into the water. The actor let go of the dog and it was verbally cued to swim to the trainer who stood just off camera. As the dog passed the drowning actor with the life preserver, the actor grabbed hold of the dog and guided it to the trainer who lifted it out of the water and dried it off. Samson was then rewarded with a favorite treat. During a grooming shop sequence, an actor walks the dogs on leashes and puts them in cages. She lifts one of the dogs onto the grooming table as the burglars enter. One dog releases the other dog from its cage and the dogs use ribbon to tie up the thugs. Both trainers stood directly off camera as the two actors interacted with the dogs. Using hand signals, one trainer cued the dog to go to the cage and open the door to let out the other dog. The door on the cage was left partially open. A trainer gave a verbal command from off camera and Samson ran to the chair and grabbed the ribbon in his mouth. The dog then went to its mark by the actor's legs. Trainer's stood on either side of the dog and gave verbal cues to get the dog to circle the actor with ribbon in it's mouth and appear to tie him up. One of the dogs is trapped inside a tunnel by the burglar who pushes a big box in front of the tunnel's only opening. The other dog comes to his buddy's rescue and pushes the box out of the way freeing Samson. The trainer put Samson inside the tunnel and stayed inside with the dog. Then an empty box was put in front of the opening by the actor. When Hercules comes and pushes the box out of the way, the trainer helps from inside the tunnel. As the dogs run through the warehouse full of boxes and paints, lots of verbal commands and hand signals were used by the trainers. The boxes were stacked so that they created wide steps for the dogs to use as they climbed to the top. All of the paint cans had strings attached to them and were operated by assistants off camera. They contained colored water. This sequence was filmed in cuts, which means the cameraman would film the dog's paws on the paint can first and then film the can spilled over. Another sequence that was in cuts was the one at Universal Studios Theme Park. We see the dogs using the control panels as the crooks ride on the rides but the crooks end up chasing the dogs through the park. One thug catches the dog, brings it to a room and ties it up. The other dog goes to get the boy for help. For this scene, the trainer put the dog's paw on the control panel and then the camera cut to the crooks on the ride. For the chase sequence, the dogs were released by one trainer and ran to the other trainer who was using hand signals off camera. As the dogs ran by, the actor reached down and picked one up. The trainer took the dog from the actor after the shot and rewarded it with a treat. To make it appear as if the dog was captive, the trainer tied a rope to the dog's collar and the other end was tied to the table. The trainer verbally cued the dog to stay. Later, Samson goes to the forklift and begins to drive it. The trainer put the dog on his mark in the forklift with paws on the steering wheel. The trainer hid alongside the forklift and moved the steering wheel making it appear as if the dog was driving. Later in post production, it was made to look like the forklift was actually moving. After this series of capers, Hercules and Samson prove that they are once again "Little Heroes.