User Reviews

It's a rainy day and the boys are late getting home from school. Wally makes it home first and Beaver is right behind and he has a surprise but what? It's a dog, a Chihuahua. Ward figures the dog must have an owner, so Ward will help the boys place an ad in the newspaper.

Ward gets fourteen calls, but no owner yet. Ward is thinking of removing the ad and maybe the Cleavers will have a dog. But the fifteenth call from Mrs. Bennett sounds right; the dog's name is Poncho. Beaver is in no mood to surrender "his" dog to its owner, even if the dog responds to its name. Mrs. Bennett will be stopping by in the morning to pick up Poncho.

Beaver has to act fast. His decision is fast; just wrong. Beaver smuggles Poncho out of the house and into school. As Linda is reciting in Miss Canfield's class, Poncho makes some whimpering noise. Miss Canfield wants an explanation as to why Beaver has a dog in school. Beaver says his dad is allergic to dogs, and his father is going to give the dog to a mean old lady who hates dogs. A good story, but Beaver and Poncho are going to Mrs. Rayburn. Ward has to go to school and he's not happy as he's bawled out an employee at work.

Ward, Beaver, Wally, and Poncho are home. Ward is not only upset with Beaver; he's not happy with June either. June could have handled the situation, she had no reason to have Ward leave work. June says Mrs. Rayburn was one of her teachers and she still makes her nervous. June's story is as lame as was Beaver's: she just didn't want to be the bad guy (girl). Mrs. Bennett comes by to pick up Poncho. This time the dog is there. Beaver explains why he took the dog to school. While Beaver's excuse doesn't completely mollify Mrs. Bennett, it softens Ward such that he decides he will rethink Beaver's punishment. The following day Beaver tells Miss Canfield that he's not angry at her for squealing. Miss Canfield is pleased but Beaver needs to know she had to; and she had to help Beaver understand why he couldn't lie to get out of a problem. Beaver understands, but no doubt his crush on Miss Canfield helps.

This episode shows clear evidence of the cutting that has taken place to add additional commercials. At the start of this episode we see Poncho in a school locker, but that scene doesn't reappear in the "running" episode.

Boys and dogs, I am surprised Wally and Beaver never had a dog. There were plenty of "love affairs" with animals but no permanent Cleaver pet. No doubt the writers saw a pet as adding complications they just didn't want to deal with. If memory serves, none of the boys who were semi-regulars had pets. It was jarring enough to see an occasional parent turn into a different actor, but kids who watched would certainly know if a pet morphed.

This was one of the first animal episodes on LITB, and it is a tender and touching one. Beaver always had an affinity with animals, and the creature in this case is a tiny Mexican Chihuahua, named Poncho, that has escaped from a spinster lady (played by recognizable character actress Maudie Prickett). Beaver develops an attachment to the dog and, when the owner turns up, can't bear to part with him; so he hides Poncho in his jacket and brings him to school. Beaver's concealment of Poncho is duly discovered by his teacher Miss Canfield and he is sent to the principal's office.

Ward at first sees Beaver's action as pure theft, but after Beaver is given a chance to explain himself he realizes that his action was motivated by love for the dog.

There is an extra layer to the episode. When Ward receives the phone call from the dog's owner, he waits until the following morning to tell Beaver, presumably to spare his feelings. However, this inadvertently causes Beaver to take the dog to school. If Ward had been forthright and told him the moment he found out, Beaver would have had more time to say goodbye to Poncho.

However you look at it, this early episode is pitch-perfect. It's also a plus to see the lovely Miss Canfield, Beaver's early teacher.

(*Ward to Wally quote*) - "Could you tell me why you would deliberately jump in a puddle of water?"

Beaver sneaks a tiny dog into the house. He wants to keep the dog, but he knows that his parents won't let him.

The dog's name is Poncho and he is a Chihuahua.

Beaver puts an ad into the Courier News letting people know that the dog has been found.

When Mrs. Bennett comes to claim Poncho, she doesn't understand Beaver's special attachment to the animal.