Moose Hunters 1937

The short opens with a female moose, her blond curls and oddly antlered silhouette, wading through a quiet lake. Her mating call comes from a horn, and her legs look suspiciously familiar—revealing the ruse: Donald Duck and Goofy are tucked inside a moose costume. Trailing them is Mickey Mouse, camouflaged as a tall shrub on stilts. The disguised “lady moose” answers Goofy’s call, and Mickey’s whispered cue to “do their stuff” signals the plan to shoot the moose and bring it down.

Mickey is on a hunt, gliding behind a bush while his own moose call draws a large red bull moose from cover. The sudden noise spooks the mouse, his shotgun clattering to the ground as it shatters. The hungry bull, now eyeing the disguise, bites into it, snatching away the shorts and a mouthful of leaves before the mouse can reclaim them. The scene is a chaotic scramble of slips and pratfalls as the creatures bumble through the hunt.

Meanwhile, Donald and Goofy have tracked down a formidable black bull moose. To caper up their disguise, Donald sweetens the ruse with makeup and lipstick, while Goofy adds a splash of “deer kiss” perfume and a measured spray that drifts on the breeze toward the unsuspecting target. The bull, entranced by the scent, follows the trail to the waiting “lady moose.” A teasing, flirtatious walk seals the attraction, and the rutting bull’s smitten gaze intensifies as he nears the costume.

When the costumed cow moose gives a playful “yoo-hoo,” the bull’s fascination grows; he tears off the disguise himself, and Goofy—still wearing the moose head—quickly rallies a plan to restore the attire. A rapid fan-dance briefly distracts the bull, and Donald and Goofy slip the costume back on, making the pair seem all the more alluring to the lovestruck animal. The seduction continues as they lead the bull away, but disaster strikes when Donald loses his grip and nearly plummets off a cliff, only to be chased by a buzzing bee that follows him into the disguise. The bee causes wild chaos, and the moose head comically flies off Goofy, landing back on him just before they’re discovered.

They steer the ploy toward Mickey, hoping the plan will lure the bull toward the mouse’s hiding place. But the disguise’s velvet deception is challenged again when the moose under the costume spots a real opportunity for romance. A flirtatious “yoo-hoo” breaks the moment, and the rutting bull turns his attention to the attractive cow moose that strides toward him. The bull’s advances become a comic tug of war as the real Goofy, trapped beneath the moose, tries to swat him away, while Donald scrambles to reposition the disguise. The two bulls lock horns in a thunderous clash, their antlers rending the ground as they battle for the supposed mate.

Caught in the chaos, Goofy and Donald scramble up a tree, clinging to its limbs as the fight rages below. The epic clash shifts the focus away from the disguise, and the two enmeshed moose finally tire of the spectacle, charging off in a furiously stomping escape. Donald and Goofy scurry to safety, chased by the enraged beasts, while Mickey soon arrives to join the wild retreat. They hop into a boat, tearing across the water in a frantic dash that carries them away from danger and toward the cartoon’s closing moment, a madcap flight that wraps up the entire escapade.