Set in the 1860s this is the tale of a pioneering family living on a farm out West. They are strapped for cash so the father, played by Fess Parker, has to take a cattle herd to the markets but he will be away three months. He implores his son, Travis, played by Tommy Kirk, to be the man of the house while he is away and to look after things until he gets back. Dad has scarcely left the house when an old yellow Labrador cross dog turns up.

Old Yeller as he becomes known has run away from his owner and he has a pretty bad reputation for thieving, especially meat left out to cure. He frightens the mule Travis is using to plough a field and the runaway mule wrecks the fence. While Travis is trying to warn Old Yeller off by throwing rocks at him Arlis, his younger brother steps in to claim the dog as his own. Despite Travis? protestations the dog stays and starts the process of winning everyone?s heart. Old Yeller proves how good he can be by staying out all night sleeping near a tempting side of meat without doing the wrong thing. The dog joins Arlis in a fishing expedition and proves to be a very good fisher dog. He also wards off an attacking bear after Arlis tries to capture the bear?s cub, endearing himself to the whole family in the process. Soon he makes his way into the boys? bed at night and becomes the gamekeeper when he helps catch the racoons that have been eating the corn. Eventually Old Yeller?s owner, played by Chuck Connors, turns up but he strikes a deal with Arlis to exchange Old Yeller for Arlis? pet toad and a meal from Mum, played by Dorothy MacGuire. She must have been some cook that woman!

Things turn from good to bad when Travis goes out into the woods to try to catch some pigs. Travis falls into the middle of the pigs and gets gored for his trouble but Old Yeller jumps in to save the day. The dog suffers a range of injuries too and there is an anxious wait to see whether the boy and or Old Yeller have picked up rabies from the pigs. Travis is okay eventually and just when the time arrives for Old Yeller to be declared safe he turns vicious and Travis has to shoot him. The father arrives home with a new horse for Travis but he and the rest of the family continue to mourn Old Yeller. Fortunately Old Yeller had the foresight to have pups with the neighbour?s dog so the son of Old Yeller was there to keep the family line going.

I can remember seeing this movie when I was a kid, and that?s not a couple of days ago I might add. I remember the powerful effect it had on me at the time when the boy had to pull the trigger on the dog and I wondered through the tears whether I would have had the strength to do it. To me that?s the whole point of the movie ? the faithful hound posed a risk to the family and the moral dilemma was whether they would have the gumption to shoot him before he did any ongoing damage to the humans.

The dog lost out in the scheme of things and that is the objectively correct thing to do. It also allowed the boy to pass through a stage into manhood and the puppy showed that life would go on. As the father said ?Don?t waste the good part of life worrying about the bad.?
The movie seems to have lost a little over the years, as I didn?t cry this time ? or have I got tougher as I get older. It is worth having a look at the film for this sort of reason alone. I now have my own kids and we have a dog. I still wonder whether we would have the guts to have the dog destroyed if it were to become a threat or whether we would call in the vet. Either way, it is not a nice question to have to deal with and I am glad the movie dealt with it so well.

THE EXTRAS

There are a heap of extras on offer, including material on Fred Gipson, the writer of Old Yeller and a series of other novels for kids. We see the theatrical trailer, actors talking about the movie, Walt Disney doing the same and find out that Spike was dog bought from the Pound for the princely sum of $4.00. There is a m?nage on Disney dogs, both animated and live; the Disney almanac from 1957 to showcase the wide variety of production; there are production stills; advertising such as lobby cards, posters and merchandise as well as fan letters, invitations to the premiere and press reports.

CONCLUSION

Old Yeller has a bit of a reputation of a food thief but when he lands on the farm with Travis and Arlis he wins everyone?s heart. He protects the boys and helps them in their many chores around the house. But when he fights with pigs the rabies he contracts leads Travis to the awful decision that Old Yeller has to die.