The episode featured Vaughn Armstrong, who reprised his role of the Kreetassan Captain from the episode "Vox Sola". Several scenes also proved challenging for the main dog actor who portrayed Porthos, who was named Breezy. She was required to lie still for long periods, jump into Bakula's arms on command and also act on her own whilst her trainer was not on set. Berman compared the relationship between Archer and Phlox to "The Odd Couple", saying that the episode was "a lot of fun". The episode was nominated for the 2003 Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation (short form) and received the highest Nielsen ratings for any episode of "Enterprise" during season two at that point. Critical reception was mixed.