The Cat's Me-Ouch!

Infobox Hollywood cartoon
cartoon_name = The Cat's Me-Ouch!
series = Tom and Jerry


caption = The Cat's Me-Ouch title card
director = Chuck Jones
Maurice Noble
story_artist = Michael Maltese
animator = Ben Washam
Ken Harris
Don Towsley
Dick Thompson
voice_actor = Mel Blanc
June Foray
musician = Eugene Poddany
producer = Chuck Jones
studio = Sib Tower 12 Productions
distributor = Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
release_date = flagicon|US 1965
color_process = Metrocolor
runtime = 6' 14"
preceded_by = "The Year of the Mouse"
followed_by = "Duel Personality"
movie_language = English
imdb_id = 0059018

"The Cat's Me-Ouch!" is a 1965 cartoon produced and directed by Chuck Jones. The short features a tiny bulldog who would go on to make another appearance in the final Tom and Jerry cartoon, "Purr-Chance to Dream" in 1967.

Plot

Jerry steps out of his mouse hole, only to be met by a cleaver-wielding Tom, who scares a layer of fur off Jerry. Tom tries to get Jerry with the cleaver, and after a few tries, Jerry hides in "DOG" magazine. Jerry falls down the stairs, and when he is at the bottom the magazine is open to a page with bulldogs that can be ordered for $15.95. Jerry smiles, thinking of the time in "Tom-ic Energy" where Tom was chased by the bulldog. Deciding to order one in order to scare Tom, Jerry writes a letter and takes it out to the mailbox, at one point flying on the letter like a magic carpet. Tom looks out the bedroom window and sees Jerry flying on the letter, not knowing the true intentions, but when Jerry lands on the mailbox his evil laugh scares Tom.

The delivery truck shows up and the delivery man has a large crate containing a loudly-barking dog. As Jerry signs for the crate, Tom is almost too scared to look on as Jerry takes a crowbar to the crate. Jerry whistles for the loud dog to come out...and it is a tiny bulldog. Tom is happy to see the dog's small stature, but Jerry orders the dog to take care of Tom. After it sits around panting and barking, Jerry lifts up the dog and compares the dog to Jerry (Jerry being bigger than the dog), which causes the dog to snuggle up to Jerry and fall on its head due to the dog's short legs. Jerry picks up the dog, who then licks him, as Tom comes out to investigate. Jerry takes the dog back into the crate with him, and ends up hanging on the tail when the dog wants to go out and meet Tom. Tom tosses the dog up a few times, pointing and laughing, which causes the dog to buzzsaw Tom's right arm hair off. Tom is still smiling until the dog repeats on the left arm-leading Tom to frantically try and shake the dog off. With a mouthful of fur, the dog hits the ground, only to buzzsaw on Tom's tail, turning part of it into sausages. Seeing the state of his tail, Tom runs into the house screaming.

A satisfied Jerry pats the dog on the head, who then snuggles up again (and as usual, falls on his head due to the short legs). Stepping back, the dog feels a little weird and scratches at a flea. When the pesky flea will not come off, the dog buzzsaws itself, killing the flea. The now-proud dog tries to find Jerry-searching around the crate, falling, and whimpering before seeing Tom in the window, holding Jerry by the tail in one hand and flicking his head with the other. The angry dog charges up, running around the yard, and as he is about to charge into Tom, Tom shuts the door while Jerry is trapped in a jar. The door, however, was no match for the dog who brings it down from the top. Tom and the dog flip the door over lengthwise (whenever Tom is up, he yells "A-HA!") as the trapped Jerry watches on. When the door gets to the wall, they flip widthwise until the door is back in the door frame, and Tom is on the outside (with an "A-HA!"). Realizing his predicament he runs and grabs an axe and tries to chop down the door as the dog opens the lid on the jar, landing in with the now-free Jerry. The two watch Tom, and when Tom breaks in (another "A-HA!"), the dog buzzsaws the axe handle, leaving the blade part to fall flat on his foot, and while Tom is screaming in pain the dog buzzsaws Tom.

On crutches, with his head, tail, and left foot bandaged-and the hair still gone on his lower arms-Tom heads into the hospital. Tom winces as the doctor unwraps his foot, revealing that the dog is still biting. Tom shrugs his shoulders before unwrapping his tail, which Jerry is biting.

Notes

*The dream where Tom was being chased by the bulldog was footage from "Tom-Ic Energy".