While Jim is away, Travis sets off to work in the cornfield, where he encounters "Old Yeller" (Spike), a Labrador Retriever/Mastiff mix. He was called that because "yeller" is a dialect pronunciation of yellow and the fact that his bark sounds more like a human yell. Travis unsuccessfully tries to drive the dog away, but Arliss likes him and defends him to Travis. However, the dog's habit of stealing meat from smokehouses and robbing hens' nests does not endear him to Travis.
Later, Arliss tries to capture a black bear cub