The Fox and the Hound is a 1981 American animated buddy drama film produced by Walt Disney Productions and loosely based on the 1967 novel of the same name by Daniel P. Mannix.

The ensemble voice cast consists of Mickey Rooney as Tod and Kurt Russell as Copper, respectively, with Pearl Bailey, Jack Albertson, Sandy Duncan, Jeanette Nolan, Pat Buttram, John Fiedler, John McIntire, Dick Bakalyan, Paul Winchell, Keith Mitchell, and Corey Feldman providing the voices of the other characters of the film.

Meanwhile, her neighbor, hunter Amos Slade, brings home a young hound puppy named Copper and introduces him to his hunting dog, Chief, who is at first annoyed by him but then learns to love him.

Chief catches Tod as he attempts an escape on a railroad track, but an oncoming train strikes him, resulting in him falling into the river below and breaking his leg.

After a disastrous night on his own in the woods, Big Mama introduces him to Vixey, a female fox who helps him adapt to life there.

In May 1967, shortly before the novel won the Dutton Animal Book Award, it was reported that Walt Disney Productions had obtained the film rights to it.

[4] In spring 1977, development began on the project after Wolfgang Reitherman had read the original novel and decided that it would make for a good animated feature as one of his sons had once owned a pet fox years before.

[3][5] The title was initially reported as The Fox and the Hounds,[6] but the filmmakers dropped the plural as the story began to focus more and more on the two leads.

[11] Another fight erupted when Reitherman, in thinking the film lacked a strong second act, decided to add a musical sequence of two swooping cranes voiced by Phil Harris and Charo.

These characters would sing a silly song titled "Scoobie-Doobie Doobie Doo, Let Your Body Turn to Goo" to Tod after he was dropped in the forest.

Charo had recorded the song and several voice tracks which were storyboarded,[12] and live-action reference footage was shot of her wearing a sweaty pink leotard.

However, the scene was strongly disliked by studio personnel who felt the song was a distraction from the main plot, with Stevens stating, "We can't let that sequence in the movie!

The supporting roles were filled by Disney voice regulars including Pat Buttram as Chief, Paul Winchell as Boomer, and Mickey Rooney, who had just finished filming Pete's Dragon (1977), as Adult Tod.

[32] Vincent Canby of The New York Times claimed that the film "breaks no new ground whatsoever", while describing it as "a pretty, relentlessly cheery, old-fashioned sort of Disney cartoon feature, chock-full of bouncy songs of an upbeatness that is stickier than Krazy Glue and played by animals more anthropomorphic than the humans that occasionally appear."

Parents who don't relish chaperoning their tykes to see the movie, but find they must anyway, can take heart in the knowledge that the running time is 83 minutes.

He argued that it shows that biased attitudes can poison even the deepest relationships, and its bittersweet ending delivers a powerful and important moral message to audiences.

[35] Roger Ebert of the Chicago Sun-Times also praised it, saying, "For all of its familiar qualities, this movie marks something of a departure for the Disney studio, and its movement is in an interesting direction.

"[37] Michael Scheinfeld of Common Sense Media gave its quality a rating of 4 out of 5 stars, stating, "It develops into a thoughtful examination of friendship and includes some mature themes, especially loss.

[39] In his book The Disney Films, Leonard Maltin also notes that that scene received great praise in the animation world.

"[41] Craig Butler from All Movie Guide stated that it was a "warm and amusing, if slightly dull, entry in the Disney animated canon."

His final remark is that "Two of the directors, Richard Rich and Ted Berman, would next direct The Black Cauldron, a less successful but more ambitious project.

"[42] Rob Humanick of Slant Magazine gave the film 31⁄2 out of five stars, noting that it was the transition point between the remaining original animators since Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs to the new generation, saying that "the results culled the best qualities of both groups."

"[43] RL Shaffer of IGN wrote a rather mixed review, claiming that it "is just not as impressive as Disney's early work, or their late '80s/early '90s pictures.

"[44] James Kendrick of Q Network Film Desk stated that it "is not one of the studio's best efforts, but nonetheless it remains a fascinating product of an era of upheaval as well as a meaningful statement about the nature of prejudice.

"[45] Peter Canavense of Groucho Reviews stated that it "is sweet but a bit dull", noting that "Overall, the picture is good-hearted and colorful, with an ending that carries a nice touch of ambiguity about the tussle of nature and nurture.

"[46] John J. Puccio of Movie Metropolis claimed that it "is very sweet and no doubt a delight for children, but I found it quite slow and tedious.

The website's consensus states that "The Fox and the Hound is a likeable, charming, unassuming effort that manages to transcend its thin, predictable plot.

Examples include The Lost Fawn, in which Copper uses his sense of smell to help Tod find a fawn who has gone astray;[53] The Escape, in which Tod and Vixey must save a Canadian goose from a bobcat;[54] The Chase, in which Copper must safeguard a sleepwalking Chief;[55] and Feathered Friends, in which Dinky and Boomer must go to desperate lengths to save one of Widow Tweed's chickens from a coyote.

[56] A comic adaptation of the film, drawn by Richard Moore, was published in newspapers as part of Disney's Treasury of Classic Tales.

From 1981 to 2007, a few Fox and the Hound Disney comics stories were produced in Italy, Netherlands, Brazil, France, and the United States.