Question: Was "Dakota" really the secret word the money carrying horses trained to stop for?
Scott215
16th Sep 2018
Night at the Museum (2006)
Answer: It's unlikely that code words were used like that in real life; horses don't understand "words", just sounds. Expecting a team of panicking runaway horses to respond to a separate code word that means stop, when their regular voice command for stop ("ho" or "whoa") is ineffective just doesn't make sense.
They weren't panicked runaway horses, as stated in the film, they were money carriers trained not to stop no matter what. Regular voice commands weren't effective because they weren't trained to obey them. The code word was the voice command. And horses can, in fact, be trained to respond to specific words, so it is entirely likely.
28th Sep 2016
Night at the Museum (2006)
Question: If Cecil, Gus and Reginald knew that the tablet brought the exhibits to life, and could extend their own, then why didn't they steal it from the moment it was brought to the museum in 1952? Why wait after so many years?
Answer: The tablet did not extend life (the guys grew old there, remember), but gave more energy to those affected. As for stealing it earlier, that would not have been possible as they would have been the prime suspects. The best way to do the crime was to pin the rap on somebody new, like Larry, after they had retired.
That's a seriously long waiting game.
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Answer: In the movie, yes, it was. Historically, nobody knows as different teams of horses were most likely trained to respond to different code words. The code word "Dakota" was just an example the movie used to illustrate that code words were used for stagecoach deliveries, especially when the coaches were transporting high-value cargo.
Scott215