Poochy

Poochy is a recurring ally in the Yoshi franchise. He has white fur with large light brown spots, a long red tongue, a black studded collar, lips resembling that of a duck's, and a red ball at the end of his tail. Poochy does not have ears or a nose despite them being two prominent features of a dog, and he constantly barks happily while moving along. Poochy makes his first appearance in Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island, and while he is not the star of his own game, Poochy is featured in Poochy & Yoshi's Woolly World's title. Poochy has sometimes appeared in the parent Mario franchise, albeit less prominently.

Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island
In Super Mario World 2: Yoshi's Island and its remake Yoshi's Island: Super Mario Advance 3, Poochy is an excitable little dog who looks quite happy to see the Yoshi and Baby Mario. A Yoshi can hop on Poochy, who can then transport him through whichever section they are in. Controllable in a sense, Poochy runs in whichever direction Yoshi faces. If Yoshi jumps onto a higher platform, Poochy also performs this action. Poochy can move across hazardous terrain, including lava and spikes, allowing Yoshi to safely move across. Poochy can plow through several enemies, instantly defeating them. If Yoshi throws an egg at Poochy, the egg bounces off, lands in front of Poochy, who then starts playing with it happily.

Poochy only appears in three levels: 1-Extra, Poochy Ain't Stupid; 2-1, Visit Koopa And Para-Koopa; and 3-2, Jungle Rhythm....

Yoshi's Story
In Yoshi's Story, Poochy appears to be much smaller. He helps Yoshi by sniffing out hidden items and the correct path to take.

Tetris Attack
Poochy appears in Tetris Attack as a character whom 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. In Poochy's bio, it is said that he likes monkeys. Poochy replaces the earth fairy Thiana from Panel de Pon.

Picross NP Vol. 2
In Picross NP Vol. 2, a game featuring character mode puzzles based on Yoshi's Story, Poochy is one of the puzzles.

Mario Kart: Double Dash!!
In Mario Kart: Double Dash!!, Poochy makes a cameo in the background decor of Baby Park.

Mario Party Advance
In Mario Party Advance, Poochy is featured in a Gaddget named Poochy Pal. In it, Poochy moves around a backyard, and his movements cannot be controlled by the player.

Super Mario Odyssey
In Super Mario Odyssey, Poochy appears in a few Hint Art photos that show the location of some Power Moons. In Bowser's Kingdom, Mario can fish Poochy out of a poisonous lake by having Cappy capture a Fishin' Lakitu and using its fishing rod to reel out Poochy. In doing so, Mario is awarded a Power Moon, titled "Fishing(?) in Bowser's Castle."

Unused appearances
Early screenshots for the Nintendo 64 title Paper Mario depicted Poochy, who was later removed at some point during development.