Poochy (character)

Poochy (Japanese name: Pochi) is dog that appears in the Yoshi series of video games. Poochy's name is sometimes spelled "Poochie" or "Poochey".

Yoshis can ride him in Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island. He can run at high speeds on yellow spikes, and run over any enemies in his path. To ride Poochy the player must jump on his head and look in the direction he or she wants to go. If Poochy hits a wall he'll try to jump over it, which can give the Yoshi a boost. Sometimes there will be a small gap that Poochy will run through, unfortunatly the gap will be too big for the Yoshi. Ever faithful the mutt will follow the Yoshi anywhere he goes except through a pipe or door. To distract him the player can throw an egg at his head. He'll play with it and won't pay attention to anything else.

Poochy is in World 1's extra level "Poochy Ain't Stupid", where he's required to get across many fiery stretches of cave, and World 2-1's "Visit Koopa and Parakoopa."

Other Appearances

 * Poochy shows up in several levels of Yoshi's Story. Yoshi can't ride him but he helps by sniffing out hidden items, melons, ect. This is the first game (and only) where Poochy has a nose.
 * Poochy was in an early screenshot from Paper Mario.
 * He appears in Tetris Attack, as a character that Yoshi must initially beat in a one-on-one match of the game's panel-flipping puzzles. After Yoshi beats him, the player can select to play as Poochy, though the difference ultimately amounts to cheerful barks as opposed to Yoshi's mutterings. Poochy replaces the earth fairy Thiana from Panel de Pon, the Japanese title that Nintendo remade to create Tetris Attack.
 * In Mario Kart: Double Dash!!, Poochy makes an easily missable cameo in the background decor of the "Baby Park" racetrack. All of the amusement park rides in the background are themed with characters from the Yoshi games, and Poochy is no exception.