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"Sick as a Dog"
Season/Series: 1
Number in season: 18B
Original Airdate: United States October 30, 1996[1]
Canada January 29, 1997[2]
Germany January 7, 2002[3]
Credits
Written by: Joe Fallon
Storyboard by: Jean Charles Fink
Episodes
Previous
"Arthur's Chicken Pox"
Next
"D.W. Rides Again"
Read transcript

"Sick as a Dog" is the second half of the eighteenth episode in the first season of Arthur.

Summary

When Pal gets sick, Arthur refuses to believe it has anything to do with all the snacks he's been feeding the dog and blames D.W. instead.

Plot

After Arthur gives some playful commands to Pal, he explains to the viewers that Pal hasn't been his dog for very long, but already, he's learned many things from Arthur.

Arthur then mentions how Pal learned that he shouldn't slip out of his collar during a walk. He remembers the time during a walk where Pal had tried to get in touch with another dog, by slipping out of his collar and running down the sidewalk to get to the dog. Arthur had called out for Pal to stop, but Pal didn't until both he and Arthur found a guard dog that eventually chased after them.

Arthur then explains that Pal has also learned that David's garden hose is not a chewing toy. Arthur scolded Pal for chewing four holes on it and then tried fixing it on his own with duct tape. When David later started the hose up, water gushed out of the teeth marks and sprayed into his face. When he angrily called Arthur's name, Arthur then turned to Pal and asked him if he wanted to go for a walk.

Sick as a Dog

One morning at breakfast, Arthur is feeding a few bites of his pancakes to Pal; D.W. notices and tells their mom. Jane explains to Arthur that Pal has his own food. For the rest of the morning, Arthur goes to his tree house with Pal to read a book. He asks if Pal is done with the page he's reading, and Pal barks, which Arthur takes as an agreement. Arthur offers Pal some jelly worms that were from his Halloween candy bag. Arthur explains the chewing of gummy candy to Pal, and then Arthur throws gummy balls into both their mouths. Just when Arthur tells Pal all the candy is gone from the bag, David calls Arthur for lunch.

At lunch, Arthur pulls off a piece of bread from his hot dog, and Jane tries to warn him about feeding Pal from his plate. Arthur claims he wasn't doing so and eats the piece of bread, to Pal's disappointment. D.W. asks for Arthur to hear a joke. However, after she says "Knock, knock!", Pal takes hold of D.W.'s hot dog, which she was holding below the height of the table. Arthur tries to command Pal to stop, but Pal and D.W. still continue a tug-of-war over her hot dog, causing D.W. to fall backward. Pal eats the wiener from the hot dog, and D.W. complains about Pal, wanting to teach him "a lesson he won't forget."

As Arthur is in his room playing with his toys, Pal walks to the room and then suddenly collapses on his side, groaning. Arthur picks up Pal and runs, calling for his parents. He explains the troubles to Jane and David, who advise Arthur to let Pal rest. They say that Pal may have to go to the vet if he doesn't feel better.

The news spreads to Arthur's friends. Francine tells Arthur that her aunt's chameleon fled from the vet after climbing up on the wall and into a vent, through the grills, leaving him as a stray. (Right when she finishes talking about this, the chameleon runs by, unnoticed, in the foreground.) Buster then assures Arthur that Pal cannot mutate colors or slide into a vent like the chameleon. Brain tells Arthur that the vet will find out what Pal's symptoms are. He explains to Arthur that vets know how to talk to pets. In Arthur's imaginary appointment, Pal tells the vet that his tongue hangs out and he groans. The vet decides that he should perform surgery on Pal. He turns on a circular saw and asks if Pal wants a blindfold, frightening the dog. Back in reality, Buster tells Arthur that Pal may not need to go to the vet if he feels better immediately. Arthur agrees.

Later, Arthur sees a still-ill Pal who refuses to go for a walk. Arthur explains to David that a walk is Pal's favorite thing. D.W. thinks chewing on the hose was Pal's favorite thing (which is not true). Arthur gets worried about what will happen next with Pal.

David and Arthur decide to go to the vet, and Pal is ushered to the doctor. The Amazing Larry offers Arthur his sympathies for Pal, and explains that the reason he is there is because his snake Victoria tied herself into a big knot. Sue Ellen explains to Arthur that her snail (who is also groaning) has been acting sluggish. David comes back into the waiting room and explains to Arthur that Pal will have to stay at the vet overnight. Arthur is devastated by this news. He tells his dad how he and Pal have never been separated like this, but David explains that this is the way for Pal to get the best treatment. Through a window, Arthur sees Pal, who is in a crate. Arthur leaves, sadly reassuring Pal that he'll be fine. Arthur gets emotional, but he blames this on an allergy.

At dinner, Arthur is still very upset, and he hardly even eats his food. D.W. thinks they can now get a "good" dog, which makes Arthur annoyed. While Arthur is in the living room, D.W. apologizes to Arthur for annoying him at the dinner table. She says that she knows how Arthur is feeling, because she had the same bad mood when her bird died; instead of helping, this just makes Arthur more upset.

At the playground, Brain explains to Arthur that the vet will probably find out what is wrong with Pal and that Pal will be sent home the next day. Buster and Francine agree. Arthur reckons Pal's sickness was caused by D.W., because "she always hated" Pal. Buster says they should call the police and have D.W. arrested. Brain says that D.W. has to be considered innocent until proven guilty. They decide to put D.W. on trial.

Arthur and his friends play "courtroom" with D.W., where Brain poses as the judge; Francine, the lawyer; Buster, the jury; D.W., the defendant; and Arthur, the plaintiff. Brain accuses D.W. of making Pal sick. Arthur demands that D.W. explain how she made Pal sick, and D.W. gets defensive, asking why she would do such a thing. Buster angrily assumes that D.W. is really an alien who has been sent to Earth to remove dogs in an attempt to make way for an alien invasion. He adds that this is because only dogs would be able to tell who is an alien and who is not; this makes Arthur, D.W., Brain, and Francine look at Buster in surprise. Brain angrily declares D.W. guilty and Francine demands the proof, saying D.W. is innocent until proven guilty for her "crime". D.W. decides to leave, because the game they're playing is "dopey". Arthur tells her he knows that she made Pal sick and that he will find the proof. Buster then tells Arthur under his breath that D.W.'s an alien.

That night, Arthur has a bad dream: several aggressive dogs surround Pal's cage at the vet's office. D.W. opens the cage and laughs cruelly at Pal. At Arthur's house, the phone rings and Arthur answers; he hears Pal barking on the other end. Back at the vet's office, the vet is tied up and the dogs flee, with one of them carrying Pal in its mouth. A snake uses a saw to break open the window's bars and the dogs escape. Arthur runs quickly to the scene and the vet tells him that the dogs are gone, and no one knows where they are. Arthur realizes that Pal is missing and calls out for him. Arthur then wakes up from his dream, turns on the light and remarks on the dream, calling it "ridiculous", and adds that Pal doesn't know the Reads' phone number.

After Arthur returns to the vet, he waits for a bit, and initially thinks the nurse is talking to him when she says "Your dog — it had puppies." Arthur corrects her, saying that Pal is a boy dog; the nurse replies that she was talking to Lucy (who is also in the vet lobby), and Lucy leaps up in excitement, saying "Skungie had puppies! Woo-hoo!" and giggling.

Finally, Pal comes out, and Arthur is glad to see him; Pal appears "all better." However, the vet explains to Arthur that Pal is still slightly queasy and finally reveals the cause of his symptoms; Pal has gorged on a tremendous amount of food that he is not supposed to eat. When the vet asks what Pal had eaten the previous day, Arthur, feeling guilty, replies, "Pancakes, and two-year-old candy, and some gum...and then he swallowed a wiener whole... with mustard." The vet gives Arthur a book that explains what dogs are supposed to eat in order to stay healthy. He then jokingly states that if Arthur actually ate in the same manner as Pal, his stomach should maybe be checked as well.

While Kate, D.W. and Jane are outside the house, Arthur appears with Pal. When D.W. asks what was wrong with Pal, Arthur explains that he made Pal sick by giving him things to eat and explains the differences of stomachs between humans and dogs; Arthur then apologizes to Pal for making him sick. When D.W. reminds him, Arthur apologizes for blaming her, and says that it really wasn't her fault; he also adds that he will try to convince Buster that she is actually not an alien. D.W. accepts his apology before asking why he thought she would do anything to Pal; Arthur replies that is was because he had said she would "teach [Pal] a lesson he'd never forget". D.W. says that she still plans to do so.

D.W. then shows a dog training book that she borrowed from the library and wants Arthur to read it to her. D.W. will then try to stop Pal from eating foods he shouldn't eat, as well as to do the things normal dogs are supposed to do. D.W. states to Arthur that, when all the training has been done, Pal will be exactly the kind of dog she's always wanted to have. (As she is explaining this to Arthur, D.W. is walking Pal on his leash. She doesn't notice him slip out of his collar, which goes around a stuffed bunny, leaving D.W. walking the stuffed bunny around rather than Pal.)

Characters

Major

Minor

Cameo

Mentioned

Trivia

  • This is the first time Pal talks, although it is in Arthur's voice, and in his imagination.
  • This is one of the few episodes to show Arthur crying.
  • During Arthur's nightmare, D.W.'s lines, "No, wait" and "I can do it" are recycled from "D.W. All Wet" and "D.W. Thinks Big", respectively.

Episode connections

Errors

Pal's eye Goof

Pal's eyes goof.

  • In the first shot of Arthur talking to Francine, Buster and Brain, Francine has no hair, but in the next shot, she does.
  • When the vet takes Pal (who's feeling better) out to Arthur, Pal has his leash on, but when Arthur picks Pal up, Pal doesn't have his leash on, then when Arthur puts Pal down, Pal has his leash on again.
  • At about 1 minute and 48 seconds into the episode, Pal's eyes change for a split second when he barks.

Home video

VHS:

DVD:


Gallery

Main article: Sick as a Dog/Gallery

References


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