49 Fun Facts About TV Pets

Eddie, Martin Crane's dog on Frasier, was what breed?

Eddie was a Jack Russell terrier whose habit of staring down Kelsey Grammer became a running sight gag; the dog reportedly received more fan mail than the human cast.

What was the name of the dog who played Eddie on Frasier for the first several seasons?

Moose played Eddie from the 1993 premiere; his son Enzo, bred as a stand-in, took over the role later in the run and did the stunt work.

Comet, the Tanners' golden retriever on Full House, was played by which dog?

Buddy, the golden retriever who played Comet, went on to star as the basketball-playing dog in the 1997 film Air Bud.

Salem, the talking cat on Sabrina the Teenage Witch, was sentenced to how long as a cat?

Salem was sentenced to 100 years as a cat for trying to take over the world; on the sitcom he was mostly an animatronic puppet, voiced by Nick Bakay.

The talking horse Mister Ed was played by a palomino gelding with what name?

Bamboo Harvester, a palomino gelding, played Mister Ed through all 143 black-and-white episodes; the voice was former Western actor Allan Lane.

Mister Ed will only talk to which character?

Mister Ed speaks only to his owner, architect Wilbur Post; the running gag is other characters overhearing Wilbur and asking whom he is talking to.

Flipper, the 1960s TV dolphin, was played mainly by female dolphins with which two names?

Susie and Kathy were the two female dolphins most often credited as Flipper; the show was co-created by Ricou Browning, who had played the monster in Creature from the Black Lagoon.

The first dog to play Lassie on screen, and the founder of the Lassie line, was named what?

Pal was male, though Lassie is female; the Saturday Evening Post called his the most spectacular canine career in film history.

For how many seasons did the Lassie TV series run on CBS before moving into first-run syndication?

Lassie ran 17 seasons on CBS, from 1954 to 1971, then two more in first-run syndication; the Jeff Miller years gave way to the orphan Timmy and the Martins on the farm.

In The Adventures of Rin Tin Tin, the dog and the boy Rusty live at which cavalry post?

Rusty and Rin Tin Tin live at Fort Apache with the 101st Cavalry after surviving a raid on their wagon train; the role was credited to Rin Tin Tin IV.

The original Rin Tin Tin was rescued as a puppy from a World War I battlefield in which country?

American soldier Lee Duncan found the puppy in a bombed kennel at Flirey, France, in 1918 and nicknamed him Rinty; he went on to make 27 films.

What was the name of the dog who played Wishbone on PBS?

Soccer played Wishbone on the PBS series from 1995; voice actor Larry Brantley supplied the dog's inner monologue.

Brian Griffin of Family Guy is what breed of dog?

Brian's breed is given as White Labrador retriever; Seth MacFarlane created, designed and voices him, and he can talk, drive and stand on two legs.

How did the Simpsons come to own Santa's Little Helper?

His owner abandoned him for finishing last in a race at the dog track, where Homer and Bart had gone hoping to win Christmas money in the first episode, 'Simpsons Roasting on an Open Fire'.

Alongside Santa's Little Helper, what is the name of the Simpsons' cat?

The original Snowball died before the series began; later replacements were renamed Snowball II so nothing had to change.

Astro, the Jetsons' dog, talks with every word beginning with which letter?

Astro's every word begins with R, as in 'Ruh-roh, Rorge'; Don Messick voiced him and later reused the same growling trick for Scooby-Doo.

Dino, the Flintstones' pet dinosaur, was voiced for nearly 30 years by which legendary voice actor?

Mel Blanc voiced Dino from The Flintstones' 1960 debut until his death in 1989, alongside his better-known role as Barney Rubble.

Scooby-Doo is what breed of dog?

Scooby-Doo is a Great Dane; in early treatments the dog was a bongo-playing sidekick called Too Much whose breed wavered between Great Dane and sheepdog.

Ross Geller's pet in the first season of Friends was a capuchin monkey named what?

Marcel, Ross's capuchin, was played by a female monkey named Katie; Ross gives him up to the San Diego Zoo late in season one.

On Lost, whom does Walt give his dog Vincent to before leaving the island on the raft?

Walt leaves Vincent with Shannon before boarding the raft in the season one finale 'Exodus'; the Labrador survives the whole series and lies beside Jack in the final shot.

Buck, the Bundy family dog on Married... with Children, was what breed?

Buck was a Briard, a French herding breed, the joke being that French-hating Al owned one; Buck's thoughts were usually voiced by writer Kevin Curran.

After Buck died on Married... with Children, he was reincarnated as which dog?

Buck came back as Lucky, a cocker spaniel, in season 10 (1995); the reincarnation plot let the ageing dog actor Michael retire.

What stayed in the Brady Bunch back yard for the show's entire run after the dog Tiger disappeared?

His doghouse stayed on the back-yard set for the rest of the series; the original dog playing Tiger died early in season one and the replacement was soon written out.

Cheddar, the beloved dog of Captain Holt and his husband Kevin on Brooklyn Nine-Nine, is what breed?

Cheddar is a Pembroke Welsh corgi; the dog actor Stewart played him from the early seasons until his death in 2019.

Stella, Jay Pritchett's French bulldog on Modern Family, first belonged to an inventor played by which Broadway star?

Lin-Manuel Miranda played Guillermo, a would-be inventor, in a 2012 episode; Jay talked him out of his dog-related invention and into going back to school, and got the dog in the deal.

The Buchmans' dog Murray on Mad About You was played by a dog with what name?

Maui, a collie mix, played Murray and became famous for chasing an imaginary mouse around the Buchmans' apartment.

Bear, the dog on Person of Interest, is what breed?

Bear is a Belgian Malinois trained to obey Dutch commands; Reese took him from a gang of white supremacists and gave him to Finch as protection.

Happy, the Camden family dog on 7th Heaven, had what name with her previous owners?

Simon prayed for a dog in the pilot; the former owners' daughter spotted her on TV in the season two finale and wanted her back.

What does Lieutenant Columbo call the basset hound that occasionally accompanies him?

Columbo simply calls his basset hound Dog, never settling on a real name; it fits a detective who never carries a gun and rarely reveals his own first name.

Punky Brewster's dog was named after whom?

The dog Brandon was named for NBC executive Brandon Tartikoff, who had also named the show after Peyton 'Punky' Brewster, a girl he had a crush on as a boy.

What was the Partridge Family's dog called before it was quietly phased out after season one?

Simone, the family's dog, vanished after the first season, as did the original Chris Partridge, Jeremy Gelbwaks, who was replaced by Brian Forster.

Porkchop, Doug Funnie's dog on Doug, is what breed?

He once saved Beebe Bluff from falling through thin ice, and was a Christmas gift to Doug.

Ladybird, the Hills' bloodhound on King of the Hill, is named after whom?

Ladybird is named after Lady Bird Johnson, the Texas-born First Lady and wife of President Lyndon B. Johnson; Hank's dog is a purebred Georgia bloodhound.

Arnold Ziffel, the pig treated as a son on Green Acres, first appeared on which sister show?

Because piglets grow fast, at least one new one had to be trained each year; Arnold won three Patsy Awards.

Gentle Ben, the 1960s TV bear, lived with a wildlife officer's family in which region?

The Florida Everglades was the setting: Dennis Weaver played wildlife officer Tom Wedloe and Clint Howard his son Mark, both continuing their roles from the 1967 film Gentle Giant.

What was the name of Jed Clampett's bloodhound on The Beverly Hillbillies?

Duke is Jed Clampett's lazy bloodhound on The Beverly Hillbillies, which ran on CBS from 1962 to 1971.

K9, the robot dog of Doctor Who, first appeared alongside which incarnation of the Time Lord?

K9 debuted in 1977's The Invisible Enemy beside Tom Baker, The Fourth Doctor; never meant to be a regular, he was kept on for younger viewers and later got spin-offs of his own.

Wellard, Robbie Jackson's dog on EastEnders, was what breed?

Wellard was a Belgian Tervuren, a male character played in turn by the female dogs Zenna, Chancer and Kyte.

The first Blue Peter pet, introduced in 1962, was a dog named what?

Petra, introduced in 1962, was the first Blue Peter pet; the original puppy died of distemper days after her debut and was secretly replaced, a fact only revealed years later.

Which Blue Peter presenter lived with the show's dog Shep?

John Noakes lived with Shep from 1971, their 'Get down, Shep!' moments becoming a catchphrase; Noakes presented Blue Peter from 1965 to 1978.

The Munsters' family pet, Spot, was what kind of creature?

A fire-breathing dragon, Spot lived under the staircase of 1313 Mockingbird Lane and was mostly seen as smoke and a tail.

Blue, the dog in Blue's Clues, leaves how many paw-print clues in each episode?

Three paw prints mark Blue's clues in every episode; Blue is female, something many viewers never noticed, and her vocal effects were by co-creator Traci Paige Johnson.

Neil, a ghostly martini-loving St. Bernard, haunted which 1950s sitcom?

Topper (1953-55) had Neil the St. Bernard die in an avalanche with George and Marion Kerby and return as a ghost only Cosmo Topper could see.

Skippy the Bush Kangaroo was set in which fictional national park?

Waratah National Park was the fictional home of Skippy and the Hammonds; head ranger Matt Hammond's son Sonny was Skippy's companion, and the show was filmed near Sydney.

How was Skippy's famous 'tchk tchk tchk' sound created, given that kangaroos make no such noise?

Clicking tongues, not any real kangaroo call, produced Skippy's 'tchk tchk tchk'; several kangaroos played the role, with fake paws operated by crew for close-up 'hand' work.

Dreyfuss, the big dog on the 1988-95 sitcom Empty Nest, was what mix of breeds?

Dreyfuss was played by a dog named Bear, a St. Bernard and golden retriever mix; the title sequence showed Harry Weston walking him around town.

Bandit, Jonny Quest's pet bulldog, got his name from what?

The mask-like markings round his eyes gave Bandit his name; unlike Scooby-Doo and other Hanna-Barbera dogs, he is an ordinary non-anthropomorphic dog, voiced by Don Messick.

The wandering German Shepherd of The Littlest Hobo was played mainly by a dog with what name?

London, trained by Chuck Eisenmann, was the main dog; Eisenmann taught his German shepherds to respond to commands in English, German and French.

What is the title of The Littlest Hobo's theme song, written by Terry Bush and John Crossen?

'Maybe Tomorrow', sung by co-writer Terry Bush, opened every episode; Bush finally released it commercially in 2005 on his debut album of the same name.