The Plague Dogs (1977)

The Plague Dogs is a novel by English author Richard Adams, first published in 1977 by Allen Lane. The book centres on the friendship of two dogs that escape an animal testing facility and are subsequently pursued by both the government and the media. As in Adams' debut novel, Watership Down (1972), the animal characters in The Plague Dogs are anthropomorphised.

The Plague Dogs features location maps drawn by Alfred Wainwright, a fellwalker and author. The conclusion of the book involves two real-life characters, Adams' long-time friend Ronald Lockley, and the world-famous naturalist Sir Peter Scott. Having seen a manuscript, both men readily agreed to be identified with the characters and opinions that Adams had attributed to them, as is shown in Adams' preface to the book.

In 1982, The Plague Dogs was adapted into an animated feature film of the same name.

Plot

In the Lake District of England, Animal Research: Scientific and Experimental (or ARSE) conducts cruel and unusual experiments on animals, including two dogs named Rowf and Snitter. Rowf, a mongrel who was born in the lab, is made to swim in a large water tank for extended periods. Snitter, a terrier who was domesticated until his owner's supposed death, is given brain surgery which impairs his sense of reality. He often presents as disoriented or delusional, with limited periods of lucidity.

One night, Snitter squeezes out of his cage and into Rowf's, where they notice his door is unlatched. The dogs escape from the research station and roam the countryside. While the dogs are afraid of being caught by the "whitecoats" (doctors), Snitter is hopeful they will find a human who will give them food. Rowf, who has never experienced human kindness, is less convinced. The next day, the people of a nearby village are indifferent towards the dogs. By nightfall, they resort to killing a sheep, embracing their new role as wild animals. However, the physical toll of killing sheep, plus the possibility of being shot by farmers, present problems for the dogs.

They are approached by the Tod, a red fox with a Geordie accent, who offers to help them kill sheep and raid trash bins, while keeping them out of the way of angry humans. The dogs accept.

Local farmers become outraged as more of their sheep are killed, and local businessman David Ephraim organizes a hunt. Before Ephraim sets off, Snitter approaches his truck. Struck by empathy for the dog, Ephraim calls him over. Snitter gets into his truck with him, but as he climbs in, he accidentally steps on the trigger of Ephraim’s gun, killing him. Snitter escapes, but enters a particularly bad mental state, and is later found by Rowf and the Tod.

Mr. Ephraim’s death prompts the arrival of Digby Driver, a sensationalist reporter from London who writes human interest pieces. Driver interviews several locals, including Stephen Powell, who works at ARSE. Not knowing that Driver is a reporter, Powell confirms that two dogs did recently escape from the lab. He points Driver in the direction of Dr. Goodner, a German scientist who had been conducting experiments into the bubonic plague at the research station.

Driver also meets with Ann Moss, the sister of Snitter’s old owner Alan Wood. Wood was hit by a truck while pushing Snitter out of the way after he ran into the street. When Driver assumes the accident killed Wood, his sister confirms that she blamed Snitter, and sold him to ARSE after inheriting him. Snitter also recounts the loss of his master to Rowf, describing seeing him lying in the street, and people watching in horror. He knew she did not like him, and thought she blamed him for her brother's untidy bachelor lifestyle, preferring to spend his time with his dog.

The dogs end their partnership with the Tod after he takes a nest of eggs for himself. Driver publishes an article claiming that the dogs could have been exposed to the plague as they escaped the research station. Public perception of them shifts from anger to fear. Growing desperate for food, the dogs steal groceries from a car belonging to bank clerk Geoffrey Westcott, who had stopped at the side of a road. An embarrassed Westcott sets out to kill the dogs himself.

Rowf and Snitter argue and separate. Snitter runs into the Tod, who is being hunted in a fox hunt. The Tod, knowing he will be caught, thanks Snitter for his and Rowf's friendship. Later, Westcott spots Rowf from atop Dow Crag. Westcott leans over the edge to get a better shot, but a confused Snitter approaches him. Startled by Snitter, Westcott slips and falls to his death. On the verge of starvation, Rowf and Snitter consume his corpse. The discovery of the mutilated body leads to more media frenzy and public outcry over the dogs.

A battalion of the Parachute Regiment is deployed to kill Rowf and Snitter, who are chased to a beach. Despite his fear of water, Rowf swims out with Snitter. In the water, the dogs wonder whether they will make it to the Isle of Dog, a place where dogs are free from experiments and are only shown kindness. The dogs are on the verge of losing consciousness,when they are spotted by naturalists Sir Peter Scott and Ronald Lockley who are out for a sail. The men get the dogs aboard and head for the shore.

Meanwhile, Digby Driver receives a letter from Alan Wood. He was never dead, just badly injured and in hospital. When Driver assumed he was dead, Ann Moss went along with it to avoid being ostracized for selling Snitter to ARSE. After seeing Snitter's picture in the paper, Wood has been desperately trying to reach Driver. After confronting Moss for her lies, Driver meets Wood and breaks him out of the hospital. The two drive to the town the dogs were last seen in, but get lost along the way, ending up at the Drigg nature reserve.