Chrysler's US-based communications boss Jason Vines said in a statement that the ad went "far beyond the bounds" of what the company said was appropriate, although admitted that the attitudes of European audiences were more "blase" than elsewhere.
He said: "Although European commercials -- especially 'viral' ads like this one -- are often edgier, this one went over the edge. Chrysler Group is investigating the origins of this commercial."
He added that Chrysler had asked YouTube to pull the viral, which at the time of writing was still available to view on the site.
The ad shows the dog sniffing a tyre on a Dodge Nitro. As he lifts his leg in preparation to wee on the car, an enormous bolt of lightning emanates from it, striking the dog dead. A second bolt leaves the corpse smoking and the ad ends with the line: "Dodge Nitro. Charged with adrenaline."
FHV BBDO confirmed it had made the viral but would not comment further. It was created in support of the Netherlands Market Performance Centre.
The ad follows in a long line of controversial car virals. Ford was left distancing itself from a 2004 viral spot that appeared to show a cat being decapitated by a sunroof, to promote SportKa, which was positioned as the "evil twin" of the Ford Ka. The ad was created by Ogilvy & Mather.
Another spot in that campaign showed a car bonnet flipping up and killing a pigeon that was about to shit on it.
In 2005, Volkswagen moved hastily to denounce a viral created by aspiring ad directors Lee & Dan. It showed a suicide bomber being thwarted when the VW Polo in which he was sitting contained the blast - tying in with the official 'small but tough' positioning for the car.
Volkswagen has run its own viral marketing campaigns, including a 2003 spot, which managed to charm viewers with a young girl imitating her father by saying "bollocks". That ad was created by DDB London.