‘Old Yeller’

Celebrity Q&A, Featured Article, People
on May 25, 2008
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What breed was the dog that played in Old Yeller? I think it was a Black Mouth Cur.
—Morgan McKinney, Roxboro, N.C.

You are correct. Old Yeller, in the classic 1957 Disney movie of the same name, was indeed a Black Mouth Cur, a rugged hunting dog whose breed originated in the South. For the movie, which starred Chuck (The Rifleman) Connors and Tommy Kirk, Yeller was trained and coached by renowned Hollywood animal trainers Frank and Rudd Weatherwax, whose other canine clients included the various Lassies used on television and in the movies.