The Far Side featured a number of highly unusual pets – from classic household animals who did shocking things, to animals that had no business being domesticated and kept in people's living rooms. In many memorable strips, Gary Larson lampooned the very idea of pets, offering a number of different variations on this premise, all of which will strike a chord with readers in one way or another.

In these hilarious Far Side pet s, Gary Larson takes two different paths, each of which ultimately led to a solid laugh. In some cases, Larson offers a surprising – and in a few cases, even touching – bond between humans and wild animals; these jokes are rooted in the baseline absurdity of beasts like rhinos and giant squid as pets.

Alternatively, Larson also subverted the pet/owner dynamic in other ways, by featuring domesticated creators, such as goldfish and dogs, who rebuked or rebelled against their humans, to great comedic effect.

10 These Far Side Goldfish Are Up To Something (But What's Their Angle?)

First Published: February 28, 1983

In this Far Side goldfish , a woman walks through her door into a waiting trap, set by her pet fish, and finds herself hanging upside down from a rope around her ankle. The question of why these fish have decided to upend the pet/owner dynamic and spring this trap is a question that is left unanswered – but the small detail of the fish food next to their bowl suggests to readers that they might not have entirely thought this through.

Here, the joke is about more than just subverting the relationship between pet and owner, but doing so in a way that is logistically impossible. That gap between what is depicted, and the "how" and "why" of it, is what makes this a strong example of Gary Larson's iconic absurdist style of humor.

9 Gary Larson's Pet Jokes Were Out Of This World (What Are They Saying?)

First Published: February 9, 1984​​​​​​​

In one of The Far Side's best alien s, a green extraterrestrial creature coaxes its three-eyed pet to do a trick, demanding that it "koona phoony" on command. After frustration on the alien pet owner's part, its companion complies, extending its eyestalks and earning a smile from its master.

Captioned "pet tricks on other planets," the humor here is centered less in the sequence of images, and more in the use of a made-up alien language. With The Far Side, Gary Larson often interpreted familiar human behaviors and activities from an outside perspective – and this is perhaps the most extreme example of that. While critics might argue that many Far Side cartoons are "nonsense," there was more internal logic to the majority of them than even Gary Larson might give himself credit for. Here, the nonsense is deliberate, and effectively amusing.

8 Giant Squid Were Common Pets On The Far Side (But Why?)

First Published: February 17, 1984

In this Far Side squid , a man irately storms down the street carrying a stick, outraged at his pet squid for "jump[ing] the fence again" – as the poor creature cowers in a dark alleyway. The eyes of the squid are the most effective part of this , conveying a real sense of fear at being caught by its mean owner, mixing in a touch of sadness with the humor of this .

Gary Larson depicted a number of pet squid in different Far Side cartoons over the years; in fact, the squid was perhaps Larson's favorite recurring unnatural pet. One of Larson's go-to creative moves was to take something out of its usual context and put it in a radically unexpected setting or scenario – or in the case of his pet giant squids, both, as there is nothing more incongruous than a massive tentacled sea creature appearing on land, and acting domesticated.

7 The Far Side's Funniest Pet Squid (How Quickly Can This Door-To-Door Salesman Get Out Of There?)

First Published: July 13, 1984

Once again, Gary Larson finds great humor in a giant squid as a pet – and again, the squid's eyes are the key to this Far Side cartoon, except instead of fear, this cephalopod has an expression of rage on its face. "Oh, no, he's quite harmless," the squid's owner says to some kind of salesman lingering hesitantly in his doorway, but then adds, "just don't show any fear. Squids can sense fear."

In addition to being one of Larson's most laugh-out-loud punchlines, this is also a pitch-perfect illustration, as the size of the squid is contrasted with both the much smaller humans, and the cramped apartment that has become its home away from its natural habitat. Meanewhile, the angry eyes of the squid darting toward the intruder upon its turf will certainly stick with Far Side readers.

6 A Surprisingly Touching Far Side Rhino Comic (When Is Daddy Coming Home?)

First Published: August 6, 1984

This Using a split- format, Larson depicts a man on a business trip calling home from a phone booth, as his wife holds the phone up to their pet rhino and asks for "one grunt for Daddy."

As silly and strange as this might be, what is implicit in the joke is that the rhino is a good pet, and a valued member of the household, one who misses "Daddy" while he is away. In fact, this is the crux of the joke, and makes this one of the most memorable Far Side comics about unexpected and unconventional pets.

5 Two Of The Far Side's Pet Giant Squids End Up At The Pound At Once (What Are The Odds?)

First Published: September 20, 1984

In this Far Side pet squid , Gary Larson crafts a joke that isn't just rooted in the idea that anyone would keep a giant deep-sea squid as a pet – but rather takes that to the next level, by getting a laugh from the extreme improbability of the scenario presented, in which two different pet giant squids are lost by their owners and end up at the pound at the same time.

Adding another layer to the punchline is the caption, which reveals that the owner of one of these squids can't even differentiate between the two, as he stands in front of the squid in the foreground of the , but points to the one half-way out of frame, saying "Wait! My mistake! That's him down there" – having very nearly taken the wrong one home.

4 The Cost Of A Pet Rhino Must Be Astronomical (Is It Worth It?)

First Published: January 10, 1986

All pet owners know that their animals' love and companionship is a return on a very real, very substantial financial investment, one that includes both expected costs, like food, and the unexpected – if, for instance, one's pet dog, or in this case rhinoceros, does damage to their home.

Gary Larson offers a hilarious elaboration on that fact of pet ownership here, in a that features a rhino's horn bursting through the front door of its owners home in the foreground, while in the background, the woman of the home puts her hands on her hips and complains that their "spoiled rhino is either going to bellow or charge the door all night until we let him in."

3 The Far Side Proves You Can Teach An Old Fish New Tricks (But Can He Do It Again?)

First Published: April 10, 1986

Once more, Gary Larson features a seemingly conventional pet goldfish doing something totally unexpected – or rather, it seems, hoped for, but no less surprising. "He's doing it! He's doing it!" a man shouts to his wife, their goldfish having jumped out of its bowl onto his finger, with the implication being that the man has been trying to train his fish to do exactly this, and it has finally happened.

What makes this Far Side cartoon particularly funny are the range of reactions on the characters' faces. In the background of the frame, the wife seems bemused, at best, if not outright indifferent, while her husband is a mix of shocked and gleeful. Funniest of all, the goldfish seems surprised an alarmed at its accomplishment – suggesting it might not make a habit out of it.

2 Every Pet Owner Sacrifices For Their Animals (But How Much Is Too Much?

First Published: October 4, 1986

In this particularly funny Far Side bear , a man talks pridefully about the bear he raised from a cub – while noting that he had to learn "not to try and take her food bowl away 'til she's done," a lesson that cost him his arm, as evidenced by the hook in its place.

The look of concern on his guest's face completes the punchline here, which is one of Gary Larson's best due to its incredibly precise composition. In the foreground, the bear is shown with its snout buried in the food bowl in question, with the ursine pet being depicted as being absolutely massive. Meanwhile, the proud owner and his friend sit at a small table in the background of the frame, near the corner of the room – suggesting they would be easy prey for the pet bear, were it so inclined.

1 One Of The Far Side's Darkest Pet/Owner Confrontations (How Does It End?)

First Published: February 6, 1988

According to Gary Larson, The Far Side's darkest dog jokes, as its premise is rooted in the idea of animal abuse. The cartoon depicts a dog with dynamite strapped to its chest, daring its owner to kick him, presumably not for the first time, and find out what the consequences are.

Of all the pets that confronted their owners in Far Side s, this one is the most extreme and desperate. While the image of the dog with the bomb around its waist, and its aggressive outburst in the caption, might strike the reader as immediately amusing, the more time spent with it, the more it starts to feel like one of the most uncompromisingly bleak Far Side comics.