On-stage bite ends dog's acting career

STOCKHOLM, Sweden, Oct. 22 (UPI) -- A canine actor has been fired from a production of "The Sound of Music" in Stockholm, Sweden, after he bit an actor during the show's final scene.

Spokesman Johan Zeffer of the Gota Lejon theater said management was left with little choice but to fire the dog, a 9-year-old German Shepard named Hetz, after he bit actor Felix Engstrom on stage Friday, The Local reported Monday.

"The dog has been sacked," Zeffer said.

Engstrom said the attack was out of character for Hetz, who he said was normally a very good-natured animal, the newspaper reported.

"It's a very highly charged final scene in which I'm quite aggressive," Engstrom said in explaining the dog's possible motivations for the bite.

Trainer Erica Bjorkman said the end of Hetz's acting career is weighing heavily on the pooch.

"Hetz seems a little bit depressed at the moment," she told The Local.