Santa's Little Helper him to never wear fur again and instead raise the puppies to be world-class racing dogs. Santa's Little Helper sires another litter of puppies with Dr. Hibbert's poodle in the episode "Today I Am a Clown" (season 15, 2003). These puppies are given away to townspeople. The dog has been neglected or treated unfavorably by the family in some episodes. In "Dog of Death" (season three, 1992), he nearly dies of bloat and they decide to make budget cuts in order to pay for the required operation. Although the dog's life is saved, the family begins to feel the strain
The Call of the Simpsons DVD review of the first season, David B. Grelck gave the episode a rating of 1.5/5, adding "the surrealism of Homer as bigfoot is a major misstep. This type of gag would be very different today, if done at all." Jon Bonné at MSNBC called the episode "a perfect example of the first season’s bizarre and fruitful balance between edgy humor and softly-drawn neuroses" and stated that "it was this combination that made Groening’s shorts for the Ullman show so compelling, and ultimately what made it possible for "The Simpsons" to break the molds of network television." Colin Jacobson at