Pest of the West originally aired on Nickelodeon in the United States on April 11, 2008, and became available on DVD four days later.

It included the song "Idiot Friends," written by Tom Kenny and Andy Paley, which was later released on the album called SpongeBob's Greatest Hits in 2009.

Upon release, the episode garnered a total of 6.1 million viewers, and was met with positive reviews from media critics.

Disappointed that he lacks a famous relative, SpongeBob walks into the park where he observes a statue covered in poop and runs into Sandy, who reveals that her great-aunt named Rosie Cheeks was the first squirrel to discover oil in Texas.

He goes to The Dead Eye Funeral and Ice Cream Parlor, and later to a western saloon called the Krusty Kantina.

[2] Brown Johnson, president of animation for Nickelodeon and MTVN Kids and Family Group, said, "SpongeBob consistently finds new ways to delight our audience [...], and this special is just another example of how the creative team can put SpongeBob in any setting and deliver funny unforgettable classic moments.

[3] Nickelodeon also launched an online page for the episode located on "www.nick.com/pest", where it featured a new game of the week, and a "name generator".

"[4] The shift to Wacom Cintiqs let the designers and animators draw on the computer screen and make immediate changes or undo mistakes.

"[4] The song featured in the episode's epilogue, "Idiot Friends", was written by Tom Kenny, SpongeBob's voice actor, and Andy Paley.

Aspects of the musical cues used in the high noon duel between SpongeBuck and Dead Eye Plankton was from Sergio Leone's 1968 Spaghetti Western film Once Upon a Time in the West, complete with Ennio Morricone's harmonica riff used for the Charles Bronson character.

[8][9] "For a SpongeBob SquarePants special, it delivered what the audience expected... sight gags, humorous dialogue, and laughs.

Going into this, I was almost afraid that the writers would find a way, either for real or through a dream, to actually send SpongeBob back to the Wild West."

"[16] "Pest of the West" was released on a DVD compilation of the same name on April 25, 2008, by Nickelodeon and Paramount Home Entertainment.

[17][18][19][20] The DVD includes the episode itself, "The Krusty Plate", "Pat No Pay", "The Inmates of Summer", "To Save a Squirrel", "20,000 Patties Under the Sea" and "The Battle of Bikini Bottom."