S01.E20: A Dog, a Squirrel, and a Fish Named Fish

[Katy M]

On ‎4‎/‎27‎/‎2018 at 5:42 PM, possibilities said:

Or in the house with their family. That dog was lonely and the family was leaving him on a short tether with no company, no shelter from the sun (or predators), nor water besides. That's not even legal where I live.

We don't know how long they were leaving him outside.  Maybe they were giving him an hour of outdoor time.  And are you sure there wasn't a bowl of water there?  Do you know how short the leash was?  These aren't things I looked for/noticed.

[TV Diva Queen]

On 4/27/2018 at 6:46 PM, ChitChat said:

Amen!!  As I've said before, I don't throw my cats on my guests, so I don't appreciate it when someone invites me over and doesn't put their dogs away, and I practically get mauled walking in the door!  My SIL's dog tore a hole in my pants.  I was not pleased.  I like dogs, I just don't like them all over me. I don't like being humped or having a snout up my ass either.

What made me cringe a little bit was when Missy walked right up to the dog and was face to face with him.  A person really should approach a strange animal cautiously!  My SIL got bitten in the face by another relative's dog who was supposed to be friendly.  I would not advise a child to approach an animal in that way.  I'm with Sheldon, "GET HELP!"  The dog may be perfectly fine, but they can get spooked if a person approaches them in the wrong way.  It's all about safety for both the animal and the person.  

OMG, I want to marry this post!  Well said! 

[Yeah No]

While I agree that it's wise to be cautious around new and unknown dogs, the one in this episode was so obviously docile and sweet that Sheldon's fear seemed all the more neurotic by contrast.  I'd say "it' depends" as to how cautious one needs to be around strange dogs.  I suppose if one grew up around them and knows what to look for it's easier to know when to keep away or let them near you.  I grew up in an area where everyone seemed to have a dog including my family and there were also stray dogs around, so I was always around them and knew what to look for.  Of course that didn't prevent me from getting bitten by a dog hiding in the bushes once as I entered the house of a neighbor.  She had a horde of puppies and was being overly protective.  I didn't even see her before it happened.  Of course this was over 50 years ago. But my experience with dogs was so positive in spite of that that I never developed any complex.  Kudos to Sheldon to attempt to get over his.

[msrachelj]

On 4/27/2018 at 2:32 AM, Lily H said:

Dissenting opinion here -- I didn't like this episode at all. Appalled at how they left the not-dead squirrel tied in a plastic bag on the neighbour's porch, heartbroken at the poor sweet dog chained up on a short chain and ignored when he was obviously looking for some affection, annoyed that no one bothered to teach Sheldon how to correctly approach a strange dog, and saddened that the fish had to die because the Coopers are stupid. The way they indulge that kid and his ridiculous behaviour has ceased to be funny and is now just irritating.

thank you. i would have loved this episode if not for just what you wrote. i am getting quite tired of all the animal abuse on comedic sitcoms. there are so many evil people out there who don't need to be justified in seeing this. and when you are young, you may not realize how awful these little tidbits of "funny" shots are and i do believe people do not ever need to see this. we have turned into such p.c. police on so many things but here is one area that does need the attention. it's sickening. i see it on some of my favorite shows and it breaks my heart.

On 4/27/2018 at 12:44 PM, Gothish520 said:

Ditto - Sheldon has every right to his feelings regarding dogs. They can be loving, friendly companions, and they can also bite and cause serious injury, even death. Sheldon should be able to go to sleep at night without fear that he will wake up to an unwanted animal in his own bedroom in the morning. My own fear of dogs comes from my experiences growing up, from seeing my sister get bit by one, to having the neighbor's dog destroy our property on our own back porch, to having a dog nipping at me and barking loudly while I tried to walk to work on a public road.

I also would flip if a dog licked my tongue. It's a myth that a dog's mouth is cleaner than a human's - they just have mostly different sets of microbes which mostly don't pass between dogs and humans - but you can still contract illness from your pets. I'm on the side of "better safe than sorry" on this one. 

Squirrels are rodents that can attack, bite, and can carry rabies - I would've been so freaked out I would've done the same thing! What should Mary have done, tried to set the thing free? It was left in the middle of her living room! I would've been completely creeped out.

yes. after they realized it was not dead, it was a living thing left to suffocate to death in a plastic bag. someone could have gotten a scissor or knife to cut the bag open. why put in a non decomposing plastic bag anyway, just get a shovel and move it to the back yard under a tree or something to decompose. 

On 4/27/2018 at 12:47 PM, green said:

It's a TV sitcom, not real life.  It wouldn't be funny if the squirrel (aka some wind-up contraption/prop) wasn't hopping around in the bag or Sheldon wasn't wearing oven mitts.  And the real dog doesn't spend his entire life tied up on a TV set.

animal abuse on tv is probably the last non p.c. ,for lack of a better wording, can't think right now, subject that is still ok for some sick reason.

On 4/27/2018 at 4:42 PM, possibilities said:

I will never understand why cruelty to animals is joke material

Also, of course fish bite. Anyone who's ever gone fishing knows this.

Or in the house with their family. That dog was lonely and the family was leaving him on a short tether with no company, no shelter from the sun (or predators), nor water besides. That's not even legal where I live.

amen. amen. amen. i was so sad when i saw that poor dog was only looking for attention and all the adults were clueless. not vicious at all. was not handled well. the squirrel and fish parts just made me angry and disgusted.  thank goodness not everyone finds these things funny. i am going to start writing to the networks myself.

[CherryAmes]

6 minutes ago, msrachelj said:

yes. after they realized it was not dead, it was a living thing left to suffocate to death in a plastic bag. someone could have gotten a scissor or knife to cut the bag open. why put in a non decomposing plastic bag anyway, just get a shovel and move it to the back yard under a tree or something to decompose. 

Well mainly because we then wouldn't have had the scene with Mary coming over and confronting the neighbours with the bag of dead squirrel.  I too am not concerned about the squirrel, first of all it's not real, but second if it was I'm sure it managed to chew its way out of that bag in not time.  Squirrels, when all is said and done, are rats with cool tails.

[msrachelj]

On 4/27/2018 at 7:04 PM, ChitChat said:

I believe he was in the backyard, which was fenced, so he was protected from predators.   They will probably let him loose in the backyard once Billy's Dad fixes the "fence window!"   I did not see any cruelty to animals in this episode.  YMMV. 

leaving a squirrel to suffocate in a plastic bag. flinging a fish to the ground. cruelty. if the dog is left tied up most of time, that is cruelty also. from what the neighbor said, it seemed like this was his solution to the non problem of the dog seeking attention .

 i'm so disappointed in this show.  i was loving it previously.

[Katy M]

27 minutes ago, msrachelj said:

leaving a squirrel to suffocate in a plastic bag. flinging a fish to the ground. cruelty. if the dog is left tied up most of time, that is cruelty also. from what the neighbor said, it seemed like this was his solution to the non problem of the dog seeking attention .

 i'm so disappointed in this show.  i was loving it previously.

As has been said by so many others, the squirrel would not have suffocated.  He would have chewed his way out in well under a minute and wouldn't have suffocated that fast.  The bag was huge and no effort made to stomp out the extra air before tying it off. 

George did not fling the fish to the ground in a fit of cruelty, but in surprise at being bitten.  And in real life the fish most likely would have been fine when he put it back in the water.

And, we don't know that the dog was left tied up "most of the time."  We actually only saw him tied up outside in that one scene when Sheldon was petting him and then at the end.

[CherryAmes]

Why would having a dog tied up be cruel?  I can see scenarios where it would be of course (very short lead, hot sun etc) but generally speaking leaving a dog tied up is no worse than leaving them in a small fenced yard or in a small apartment all day.  If your dog can get out of your yard not tying it up would be far crueler IMO as you risk it getting lost, hit by a car and so on.

[green]

3 hours ago, msrachelj said:

yes. after they realized it was not dead, it was a living thing left to suffocate to death in a plastic bag. someone could have gotten a scissor or knife to cut the bag open. why put in a non decomposing plastic bag anyway, just get a shovel and move it to the back yard under a tree or something to decompose. 

animal abuse on tv is probably the last non p.c. ,for lack of a better wording, can't think right now, subject that is still ok for some sick reason. 

You do know that no animal was abused on this show?  There was NO squirrel.  It was some wind-up toy or mechanical device put in the bag by the prop department.   Same with the so-called fish in the bowl for the fish biting scene segment.  That take of the fish on the finger was a prop fish.  They don't have fish trainers in Hollywood training teeny tiny fish to bite on cue.  And no dog was left tied up all day every day on their set.  A TV show is not not not reality. 

This is fictional.  Just like when Homer strangles Bart every other Simpsons episode.  No biggie.  They are both comedies.  They are there to help people relax and unwind and have some laughs.  I didn't find any of it "sick" at all but I did find all of it pretty damn funny.

[Gothish520]

5 hours ago, msrachelj said:

yes. after they realized it was not dead, it was a living thing left to suffocate to death in a plastic bag. someone could have gotten a scissor or knife to cut the bag open. why put in a non decomposing plastic bag anyway, just get a shovel and move it to the back yard under a tree or something to decompose. 

animal abuse on tv is probably the last non p.c. ,for lack of a better wording, can't think right now, subject that is still ok for some sick reason. 

Squirrels are rodents that can carry disease. Mary thought the squirrel was left dead in her house by a dog that had NO BUSINESS entering her house. When it started moving it freaked her out and she dropped it and ran - I would've done the same thing. And even though it was still "alive", I'm sure it was injured after the dog bit it and brought it into the house.

5 hours ago, CherryAmes said:

Why would having a dog tied up be cruel?  I can see scenarios where it would be of course (very short lead, hot sun etc) but generally speaking leaving a dog tied up is no worse than leaving them in a small fenced yard or in a small apartment all day.  If your dog can get out of your yard not tying it up would be far crueler IMO as you risk it getting lost, hit by a car and so on.

Absolutely! If a yard is not securely fenced-in and the animal can still get out, then it has to be tied up, period.

Edited May 1, 2018 by Gothish520

[msrachelj]

4 hours ago, green said:

You do know that no animal was abused on this show?  There was NO squirrel.  It was some wind-up toy or mechanical device put in the bag by the prop department.   Same with the so-called fish in the bowl for the fish biting scene segment.  That take of the fish on the finger was a prop fish.  They don't have fish trainers in Hollywood training teeny tiny fish to bite on cue.  And no dog was left tied up all day every day on their set.  A TV show is not not not reality. 

This is fictional.  Just like when Homer strangles Bart every other Simpsons episode.  No biggie.  They are both comedies.  They are there to help people relax and unwind and have some laughs.  I didn't find any of it "sick" at all but I did find all of it pretty damn funny.

yep, i do know that. i'm not an idiot. the idea is what is being portrayed. not just with this show.  your point is then, that any kind of abuse, animal, human, any kind of gross aberration portrayed is ok because it's just a tv show and not real? ok then, but that's not how i feel. 

[green]

On 5/1/2018 at 4:46 PM, msrachelj said:

yep, i do know that. i'm not an idiot. the idea is what is being portrayed. not just with this show.  your point is then, that any kind of abuse, animal, human, any kind of gross aberration portrayed is ok because it's just a tv show and not real? ok then, but that's not how i feel. 

No I didn't say that.  But then I saw no abuse.  Dogs outside without secure fences are always tied up or should be.  A fish that bites me will be dropped on the floor in the process of getting myself un-bit as well it should be.  And in real life no way would I let a squirrel out of a bag.  The pissed off little bugger would tear my fingers off and give me rabies both.  Let them chew the bag open and not my flesh open.

To equate this mild TV stuff with real abuse does not compute and to accuse me of condoning "gross aberrations" ... well isn't that abusive on me when I never said any such thing?  After all I'm an animal too.   And a vegetarian one to boot so I don't abuse any animal larger than an occasional annoying mosquito I just can't put up with any more.   :-)

[LoneHaranguer]

8 hours ago, green said:

And in real life no way would I let a squirrel out of a bag.  The pissed off little bugger would tear my fingers off and give me rabies both.  Let them chew the bag open and not my flesh open.

Claws that can hang onto a branch at any angle will slice right through a bag (and anything nearby); no chewing necessary.

[BlossomCulp]

On 5/1/2018 at 9:07 AM, msrachelj said:

leaving a squirrel to suffocate in a plastic bag. flinging a fish to the ground. cruelty. if the dog is left tied up most of time, that is cruelty also. from what the neighbor said, it seemed like this was his solution to the non problem of the dog seeking attention .

 i'm so disappointed in this show.  i was loving it previously.

I guess I'm going straight to hell but I found the whole "Story of Fish Cooper" hilarious and I laughed out loud several times.  Honestly if I thought of it as animal abuse I wouldn't have found it funny but that's not the way it played to me.

[John Potts]

I loved that Sheldon approached his phobia of dogs as a problem to be overcome. His approach was actually quite sensible - maybe he should have kept his mouth shut (I'm guessing he tried to scream once the dog tried to lick him and that's when "the incident" happened), but it would be nice if "Old Sheldon" showed a similar approach to problems rather than expecting everyone else to defer to his way of doing things.

On ‎27‎/‎04‎/‎2018 at 7:58 PM, A-Lo said:

I loved how Missy looked up with shining eyes at her Mee Maw, who was sporting a black eye, and said "I want to grow up just like you!"

Loved that too!

[voiceover]

So very proud of Sheldon trying to solve his dog phobia himself.  While it's true that Mary leans hard on the overprotective fence, Sheldon's problem-solving tendencies serve him well.

Though I admit to lmao when he had his Lucy "Augh! I've been kisssd by a dog!!" moment.