History Main / GratuitousAnimalSidekick

%%* ''WesternAnimation/{{Thundercats}}'' had Snarf.
* ''WesternAnimation/TheRealGhostbusters'': The animated series has Slimer fill this role.

** In ''WesternAnimation/BatmanUnlimitedAnimalInstincts'' and its sequels, one of the bad guys' horde of robot dogs gets reprogrammed, and eventually given the name Ace. While in modern comics and a show or two Bruce has a normal dog who is named Ace as a MythologyGag, this is the closest you're ever getting in the modern era to the actual Golden and Silver Age crime-fighting version. What's cooler than a robo-dog sidekick? One that [[TransformingMecha turns into a motorcycle]], that's what!

* ''WesternAnimation/TheBradyKids'' gave the kids a whole menagerie of sidekicks: a dog, a magical talking bird, and a pair of twin [[PandaingToTheAudience panda bears]]. They made a cameo appearance in ''A Very Brady Sequel'' as a hallucination, and then an encore appearance in the credits.

-->-- '''[[WesternAnimation/TheIncredibles Mr. Incredible]]''', attempting to defend the (fictional InUniverse) TeamPet Mr. Skipperdoo in ''WesternAnimation/MrIncredibleAndPals''

* {{Parodied|Trope}} mercilessly in the ''WesternAnimation/TheIncredibles'' followup [[WesternAnimation/PixarShorts short film]] ''WesternAnimation/MrIncredibleAndPals'', a parody of '50s-'60s Saturday morning cartoons. It's a pilot to an InUniverse show about Mr. Incredible, Frozone, and Mr. Skipperdoo, a rabbit (who is original to the cartoon) that does nothing but bounce up and down. He annoys the real Mr. Incredible and Frozone in their commentary on the cartoon.

Wiki/TVTropes has TropeyTheWonderDog.

-->-- [[WesternAnimation/TheIncredibles Mr. Incredible]], attempting to defend the (fictional InUniverse) TeamPet Mr. Skipperdoo in ''WesternAnimation/MrIncredibleAndPals''

* ''ComicBook/{{Superboy}}'' had ComicBook/{{Krypto|TheSuperdog}} in his [[UsefulNotes/TheSilverAgeOfComicBooks Silver Age]] comics, who also appeared in the 1960s ''Superman/Batman'' animated series. In 2005, the Last Dog of Krypton made his move to center stage on TV in ''WesternAnimation/KryptoTheSuperdog''. Recurring heroes were Streaky the Supercat and Ace the Bat-Hound. Robbie the Robin occasionally worked alongside Ace, being an [[GratuitousAnimalSidekick animal sidekick]] ''to'' a guy who's usually an [[GratuitousAnimalSidekick animal sidekick]]. Krypto also got a ShoutOut in one episode of ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeague'' (though it was AllJustADream). Krypto himself has recently been reintroduced to the comics, and it works.
* Not to be outdone, ''Franchise/{{Batman}}'' had Ace the Bathound back during UsefulNotes/{{the Silver Age|of Comic Books}}.
** In ''WesternAnimation/BatmanBeyond'', Bruce Wayne has a dog named Ace, but he's an AngryGuardDog. Nevertheless he makes for a pretty good sidekick in the episode "Good bad dog". He also came in handy in TheMovie, "Return of the Joker."
** The FullyAbsorbedFinale of ''WesternAnimation/BatmanBeyond'' in ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeagueUnlimited'' gives us the possibility that Ace is named after a member of the Royal Flush Gang who died in Batman's arms. Since the ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeagueUnlimited'' episode was the last thing to ever be shown of the ''WesternAnimation/BatmanBeyond'' universe, it's still definitely a nod to the old Bat-Hound.
** Ace is pretty badass in ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheBraveAndTheBold'' as well.

** In the ''Batman Unlimited" movies, one of the bad guys' horde of robot dogs gets reprogrammed, and eventually given the name Ace. While in modern comics and a show or two Bruce has a normal dog who is named Ace as a MythologyGag, this is the closest you're ever getting in the modern era to the actual Golden and Silver Age crime-fighting version. What's cooler than a robo-dog sidekick? One that [[TransformingMecha turns into a motorcycle]], that's what!
** [[ComicBook/New52 The DCnU]] has introduced Titus (Damian Wayne's pet Great Dane) and the [[Comicbook/GrantMorrisonsBatman Batcow]].
** In one comic Ace was originally a vicious attack dog tormented by the Joker. He was called "Ace" for the sole reason to make the joke "[[PunnyName Aces]] High" as he killed the other two dogs, a King and a Queen, by ripping their throats out. Obivously the only person that could rehabilitate the German Shepard was Alfred and that took several months and several uses of a dog bite suit until Ace gave Alfred his respect and started listening to him (shown with a simple "sit" command). Ace winds up becoming a part of the Bat-family as he eventually comes around to Bruce.

* ComicBook/TheFalcon has a pet falcon called Redwing that is psychically linked to him.
** Most adaptations ditch the bird but pay homage to him: the Redwing of TV and film is a remote-controlled spy drone (sorta bird-shaped but not the point that you'd mistake it for a real bird.) that comes out of his wing pack. In ''WesternAnimation/AvengersAssemble,'' "Redwing Mode" is when the entire wing pack detaches and is remote-controlled, though this of course leaves Sam himself grounded until he calls it back.
* Wonder Dog (with Wendy and Marvin in tow) made his way from ''Superfriends'' on TV to the pages of ComicBook/TeenTitans....where he went nuts and killed Marvin and put Wendy in a coma. Do you think maybe the writer didn't like them all that much?

* Spoofed mercilessly in the ''WesternAnimation/TheIncredibles'' followup [[WesternAnimation/PixarShorts short film]] ''WesternAnimation/MrIncredibleAndPals'', a parody of '50s-'60s Saturday morning cartoons. It's a pilot to an InUniverse show about Mr. Incredible, Frozone, and Mr. Skipperdoo, a rabbit (who is original to the cartoon) that does nothing but bounce up and down. He annoys the real Mr. Incredible and Frozone in their commentary on the cartoon.

** Gleek in the [[ComicBook/WonderTwins Zan and Jayna]] episodes of the ''Super Friends''.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheFonzAndHappyDaysGang'':

* ''WesternAnimation/OKKOLetsBeHeroes'' parodies this with Rippy Roo, an adorable boxing kangaroo who's a member of the elite crime-fighting team, P.O.I.N.T. And then plays with it by showing that said [[BadassAdorable adorable kangaroo]] [[HyperspaceDimension was scouted]] [[CrazyPrepared for a reason]].

* Nearly every Disney movie since ''WesternAnimation/{{Pinocchio}}'' has the protagonist, and sometimes the villain as well, having an animal sidekick. (Or animated household object sidekicks in the case of ''WesternAnimation/BeautyAndTheBeast''.) ''WesternAnimation/{{Moana}}'' both parodies and lampshades this tendency: Moana starts off with a fairly standard sidekick in Pua the pig, but when her adventure gets going she winds up with the idiotic chicken Heihei. Maui calls it out later:
--> '''Maui''': If you wear a dress and have an animal sidekick, you're a princess.