Patsy Award

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The Patsy Award was originated by the Hollywood office of the American Humane Association in 1939. They decided to honor animal performers after a horse was killed in an on-set accident during the filming of the Tyrone Power film Jesse James. The letters are an acronym, and stand for Picture Animal Top Star of the Year.

The very first recipient of a Patsy was Francis the Talking Mule in 1951. The award now covers both film and television and is separated into four categories: canine, equine, wild and special. The special category encompasses everything from goats to cats to pigs — Arnold Ziffel of TV's Green Acres was a two-time winner. Arnold's trainer, Frank Inn, was the proud owner of over 40 Patsy awards, thanks to his work with Higgins, the dog (who played the lead in the Benji movies and "Dog" on Petticoat Junction), Cleo the Basset Hound, and Lassie, to name a few. Upon his death at age 86, per his request, the ashes of Arnold and Benji were buried with him.

Bob Barker served as host for the Patsy Awards but eventually resigned in protest of the cruel methods some trainers use when training animals for films.^[1]

The American Humane Association is the organization responsible for the disclaimer at the end of many films and television programs that "No Animals Were Harmed" in the production.