Puttin' on the Dog

"Puttin' on the Dog" is a classic animated short film produced by MGM Studios and directed by William Hanna and Joseph Barbera, part of the Tom and Jerry series. The animated short tells the story of Tom, a cat perpetually trying to catch his nemesis Jerry, a quick-witted and resourceful mouse. In this particular episode, Tom's attempts to catch Jerry land him in a comedic predicament. Jerry escapes a perilous situation by fleeing to the local dog pound, where he inadvertently lands on top of Spike, a gruff bulldog, who is peacefully napping. The loud commotion from Jerry's escape causes Spike to wake up, which alerts the other dogs in the vicinity. Sensing danger, Jerry rapidly escapes the dog pound, but he inadvertently sets his attention towards Tom. With Jerry having narrowly escaped captivity and Spike's awareness about Jerry's presence making him alert, Jerry quickly spots Tom, who appears in the form of a menacing silhouette lurking around Jerry's path. Fearing the consequences of being ripped apart by Spike and the pack of angry dogs, Jerry rapidly escapes from the scene. However, his escape from the dog pound creates chaos among the other dogs in the area, who have caught Jerry's scent and now smell the presence of a potential intruder. Sensing danger, Jerry rapidly navigates through the scene, causing a domino effect where a pack of ferocious dogs, driven by their strong territorial instincts, relentlessly pursue Jerry, who desperately aims to find shelter from his pursuers. Meanwhile, Tom is trying to get away from Spike, the bulldog who sensed Jerry's presence. The other dogs in the area immediately recognize Tom as the primary culprit behind Jerry's escape, since he has been perpetually trying to capture the mouse. Tom understands the precarious situation at hand and hastily conceives a quick solution to his problems. As the other dogs prepare to pounce on Tom, he swiftly spots a nearby statue of a dog, and swiftly grabs its head. Using the dog statue's head as a makeshift disguise, Tom attempts to convince the pack of furious dogs that he is indeed a canine. While the other animals are distracted by Jerry's attempts to avoid being caught and Tom using the fake head, the pack of dogs is momentarily diverted away from the duo's antics, giving Tom a temporary reprieve from danger. However, Jerry is quick to realize the ruse behind the dog statue head, as he immediately senses the discrepancy between the supposed dog's head and the actual cat's body underneath. Since Jerry has now caught onto Tom's plan, he is able to cleverly keep track of Tom's every step. In order to prevent Jerry from exposing the truth about Tom's disguise, Tom attempts to keep a low profile while pretending to be the dog statue, in an attempt to conceal his actual true identity. But this proves to be a rather tricky task, given the cat's lack of canine features. In an ironic turn of events, Tom's efforts to fool the other dogs inadvertently lead to his downfall, where his elaborate disguise is the reason behind him being consistently ridiculed and constantly in trouble. As Tom attempts to navigate through the chaos in front of him, his fake head falls away multiple times, only for him to pick it up and attempt to put it back in place. This action allows Jerry to constantly catch sight of Tom, further exacerbating the chaos among the other dogs. Jerry quickly takes advantage of the situation by using the commotion to his advantage and dodging the ferocious pack. The scene culminates when Tom's final attempt to put the statue head back results in it falling away once again. In the ensuing chaos, Jerry and Spike both successfully manage to outsmart Tom, who ultimately ends up being caught and ridiculed by Spike and the pack of dogs. As a punishment, Spike gives Tom a taste of his own medicine by ripping apart Tom's fake dog statue head, revealing his true feline identity to the watching canine pack. Throughout the series, Tom and Jerry have been a classic example of feline and rodent rivalry. But in "Puttin' on the Dog," the two engage in a particularly memorable rivalry, characterized by their constant banter and comedic misadventures.