Old Yeller

Old Yeller is a “big, ugly, slick-haired yeller dog” named for his “dingy yellow” color (13, 1). Yeller has a stub of a tail and one of his ears had been “chewed clear off” (13). Yeller’s bark is more like a yell. Yeller is clever and savvy: he figures out how to get the meat down from the dog run and is smart enough not to fall for Travis’s trap. Burn Sanderson calls Yeller “the worse egg sucker and camp robber you ever laid eyes on” (81), but knows Yeller is invaluable as a cattle dog. Yeller quickly learns to work beside Travis, accepting his leadership and helping with everything from driving Spot to the homestead, to hunting squirrels, to rounding up wild hogs.

Travis notes that Old Yeller seems to have fun battling other ferocious animals. After fighting the bear, Yeller barks like he had just had a “rowdy romp” (93). Though fierce with threatening animals, Old Yeller is gentle with Travis and Little Arliss, showing his affection by wiggling his stub tail and licking the boys’ hands and faces. Travis admits he would have missed a lot of fun and been lonesome without Yeller’s companionship. Travis sees the depth of Yeller’s bond for him when Yeller defends him from the hogs, knowing that Yeller took “the punishment meant for me” (105). Yeller sacrifices himself—incurring terrible injuries—to save Travis. Thanks to Old Yeller, Travis fulfills his responsibilities while Papa is gone. Old Yeller proves his love and loyalty for the Coates family by saving each of their lives.

Mama fulfills the traditional female gender role of nurturer and caretaker, but she also demonstrates the strength and nerve to protect her family. Mama is strong-minded and strong-willed. Travis notes that “when Mama got her mind set in a certain way, there was no use in arguing with her” (17). Mama ensures that the resources Papa and Travis provide in the form of game and crops, as well as those she harvests, are fully utilized. Mama tirelessly does everyone’s work—regardless of whose work it is— when Travis is laid up: from tending the injured to bringing in the corn harvest.

Mama is a fine cook, pleasing Burn Sanderson with her “real jam-up meal of woman-cooked grub” (83), and she is skilled at frontier medicine. Her knowledge of natural remedies saves Yeller’s life and possibly Travis’s. Caring for her family is Mama’s driving force. Courageous and loving, she once shot and wounded a hog-killing bear and risks her life to run past the mad bull to warn Lisbeth and Little Arliss. Like Travis, she maintains a mental control over fear, showing nerves of steel when she races the mad wolf home. Mama, like Travis, also appreciates natural beauty. She picked the location for their homestead because of the abundance of bee myrtle and mockingbirds, even though the settlement was farther away from the other Salt Licks settlers. Mama has a sense of humor, laughing at the stories of Little Arliss. She also displays emotion more readily than Travis, crying when Papa leaves and when Little Arliss is safe from the bear.

With Papa gone, Mama is the sole adult of the family. Though she initially asserts authority over Travis, she senses a change in him when he refuses to follow her directions after the wild hog attack; Mama understands that Travis is growing up. By offering to shoot Yeller for Travis, she gives him the chance to avoid the adult responsibility, showing her love for Travis and her desire to protect him from pain. 

At five years old, Little Arliss is a handful for Mama and Travis. He is a “screamer by nature” (46), shouting when he is happy, mad, or just to make noise. Travis thinks Little Arliss is a “noisy pest” (55). Little Arliss gets in the way when Travis does chores and scares off game when he goes shooting. Little Arliss enjoys catching small critters and insects and keeping them in his pocket—something that horrifies Mama.

Little Arliss has a stubborn streak. He stands up to Travis and Mama to defend Old Yeller, and he repeatedly defies Travis by playing in their drinking water spring. His fierce, passionate responses pay off. Mama lets Arliss keep Yeller, and Burn Sanderson, faced with Arliss’s “wall-eyed” rock-pitching fit (82), changes his mind about taking Old Yeller back.

Mama knows that since Little Arliss is too little for Travis to play with and too young to do chores, he often gets lonely. Old Yeller proves to be a good companion for Little Arliss. When Yeller is injured, Little Arliss finds friendship with Lisbeth and the speckled pup. Little Arliss’s brush with the bear helps Travis see Little Arliss as a true brother, rather than just an annoyance.

Although Papa only appears at the very beginning and very end of the novel, thoughts of Papa inform Travis’s actions, opinions, and self-reflections. Travis idolizes his “tall and straight and handsome” Papa (3). Papa showed his grit and perseverance by carving out their homestead from scratch and defending it from both hostile Indians and wild animals. Papa taught Travis everything he knows, giving him the skills to “be the man of the family” while he is gone (3). Travis bases his view of what it means to be a “man” on Papa. Travis compares himself to Papa and tries to live up to his expectations by acting and even talking like him. While Travis can do most things as well as Papa and feels that he and Yeller do a good job taking care of things, Travis misses Papa and worries that the hydrophobia plague is something that he cannot handle. Hydrophobia is a natural wildcard, a threat that even Papa had not foreseen. Consequently, Travis must learn to cope with the plague on his own, which precipitates him into adulthood. On returning home, Papa shares a life lesson that shows he understands Travis has come of age: that being a real man means not letting the bad parts of life overwhelm the good ones. 

Lisbeth, the small, white-haired, 11-year-old granddaughter of Bud Searcy, is different from other girls that Travis knows. She likes to observe boys during their contests of skill and strength, but she does not butt in. She is quiet, with “big solemn brown eyes” that Travis thinks are “right pretty to look at” (60). Lisbeth declares that even before she knew Old Yeller was Travis’s dog, she would not have turned him in as a camp robber, suggesting that Lisbeth likes Travis. The arrowhead he gives her as thanks seals her devotion. When Travis rejects Lisbeth’s gift of the speckled pup, he hurts her feelings. Travis shows that he likes Lisbeth when he admits he felt “sort of mean” about the pup and wishes he could apologize. Lisbeth, though “too little and too skinny” according to Travis (128), proves to be a big help to Mama, and Travis must swallow his pride when he sees Lisbeth doing his work. Lisbeth also values family and shows a sensitivity to the cycle of life. She does not want Yeller killed because he is the papa of her dog’s pups, and she “wouldn’t want their papa to get shot” (65). She tries to console Travis by pointing out that the speckled pup is “part Old Yeller” (155), but it takes time for Travis to reach that understanding on his own.

Old Yeller’s owner is a young, slim, polite newcomer to Salt Licks. Though he is glad to find Old Yeller, and needs the dog to help herd his cattle, his offer to let the Coates family keep Old Yeller until Papa returns shows that he recognizes they need protection from a myriad of dangers.

Sanderson has a good sense of humor: Little Arliss’s rock throwing makes him grin and admire the young boy’s spunk. Sanderson also has a kind way with children, loving Little Arliss up “until he hushed screaming” (83), and making him toy horses out of cornstalks. Sanderson sees the family’s need and love for Yeller, and he shows compassion by giving them the dog. Sanderson’s character also acts in lieu of Papa. He talks with Travis as the man of the family much the same way Papa did. Sanderson reminds Travis of his responsibility to protect the women and children. Sanderson’s warning foreshadows Travis’s obligation to kill Old Yeller. Like Papa, Sanderson approves when Travis assures him that he can take care things, saying, “That’s the way a man talks” (86).