In the first minutes of the episode, John Boy (Richard Thomas) attempts to put a saddle on Blue the mule, only to have the mule turn and run away. According to Judy Norton (Mary Ellen), for some reason, the mule was afraid of camels. The crew brought a camel onto the set and kept it hidden until the scene was filmed, and then when it came time for the mule to run, brought the camel out of hiding. The mule took one look at the camel and ran away.