Old Dog, New Tricks Ending Explained & Full Recap: Did Anton Quit The Job?

Having pets at home, I visit a vet clinic pretty often. And those of you who do the same would know for sure that a lot of those places—and I’m talking about the modern ones that almost look like mini supermarkets—tend to embrace capitalism a bit too much. They’re always trying to shove their products (and treats for your furry/not-so-furry companions) down your throat. To be very fair, this is quite an issue. Old Dog, New Tricks, the new Spanish comedy series on Netflix, has taken that matter and has given it a humorous spin while turning up the social commentary without getting preachy at all. At the center of it, we have Anton, a middle-aged, no-nonsense vet, who has to fit into this world due to a kind of (financial) situation he’s in. Quite naturally, Anton is the ‘spanner’ in the wall, and that yields a lot of comedy, some of which works, and some of which falls flat. We’re going to examine the nitty-gritty of Old Dog, New Tricks, or Animal (that’s what it is called in Spanish, rightfully so) in this article and discuss its ending, which definitely leaves room for more seasons. If you haven’t caught up with the show yet, this is your spoiler warning.

Spoilers Ahead

Why does Anton join Kawanda?

Animal begins with scruffy-looking, grizzled vet Anton having real trouble making ends meet in the Galician countryside. His clients are unable to pay him for his services; instead, they hand over milk and eggs—it’s the countryside, and Anton’s patients are mostly cows. There’s a way out though; Anton’s frenemy (yes, that’s exactly how I would put it), Vicente, wants him to sign a document that’ll help him in completing a scam regarding buying land and making a lot of money. Honestly, this whole thing is a bit hard to wrap your head around, and the show writers haven’t really tried laying it down easy, but it doesn’t matter. All you need to know is that Vicente is a crook who’s trying to get Anton on board with his scam. Anton is in what we consider to be a situationship with Vicente’s cousin, Sabela, who works at a local bar.

Because he has pride and morals, Anton chooses to not sign the document, and instead, he joins a fancy pet clinic, Kawanda, which is being managed by his niece, Uxia. He is appalled by how things are being run there. All Uxia wants him to do is please the clients—most of whom seem to have zero idea about their pets. To be very honest, this is a thing that didn’t quite resonate with me, considering I also go to a clinic like Kawanda, but I am not at all clueless about how to handle pets, and I know many such people. Anyway, it’s probably best to set my personal feelings aside and focus on the show, so let’s get back to it. So, Anton spends his days treating (or not treating) dyslexic dogs and asexual rabbits (actually it’s the client), and he keeps getting mostly red faces. That’s the low rating in this context, and since this is a very corporate thing, you know these things matter. His colleagues at Kawanda—Xoel, Bernardo, Roy, and Angela—don’t quite warm up to him, although Angela always keeps smiling. Uxia does try to help out her uncle, especially after moving in with Anton. That only happens because her boyfriend, Miguel, cheats on her (and does the blasphemous thing of locking their pet cat, Chusky, inside a room while doing it), and Uxia doesn’t have anywhere else to go.

Anton also tries his best to save his job. Taking Uxia’s advice to please the clients, he spends a bit more time than usual with Victor, who has come with his dog, Carmina. The dog is old and doesn’t have many days left, and Anton advises against operating on it. But upon getting bad reviews, he decides to call Victor and his wife, Ana, telling them he has decided to operate. The real deal here is something else, though. Victor and Ana are in the process of separating, and Victor can’t accept that. He believes if the dog is fit and fine, the marriage will last. That’s obviously ludicrous, to say the least, but pet parents sometimes associate their lives with how their pets are doing, so it’s kinda understandable. Despite saying he would operate on Carmina, Anton actually fakes it, just to satisfy Victory and his wife. Uxia also supports him in this, proving  she does have a heart after all, despite working at a place like Kawanda.

Does Anton sign the document?

This is where the show surprises you. While initially it seemed like Anton would never sign the document, he ends up doing it by episode 5. One might wonder why he would do that after defying so hard, so I’m going to get to the bottom of that. Firstly, Anton has anxiety. It’s something he doesn’t want to accept—because he’s a boomer who doesn’t believe in things like that—and keeps pretending to have heartburn. Secondly, life keeps overwhelming him every single day. He misses his old life—being a vet in the countryside tending to farm animals—so much that he would not hesitate to trespass on the property of Fermin and Loles just to check what kind of anemia their cattle are suffering from. He is also threatened by a new young vet in town, Nuno, who Uxia starts dating after meeting at a local bar. Anton eventually accepts Nuno, but when he tries to convince Nuno to join Kawanda, it backfires as Uxia gets really mad. She’s only dating the guy, and doesn’t really want to spend more time with him. Uxia’s romantic life remains a confusion to Anton, as he fails to understand what his niece really wants. That said, Uxia considering getting back with Miguel after he cheated is a subplot I would do away with, as it really doesn’t help the narrative at all.

Coming back to Anton, he kind of adopts a guinea pig called Leslie, which originally belonged to this little girl, Elena, whose mother had to replace the pet with another one to hide one big truth from the little girl—that the OG Leslie died. Anton, after initially agreeing to play along with the lie, eventually tells the kid everything and is subjected to the mother’s wrath. Having Leslie also leads him to talk about family at a dinner with Sabela, which freaks her out. I suppose all of this, collectively, is the reason behind Anton signing the document for Vicente. Despite genuinely caring about Uxia (and even Kawanda), Anton finds it too hard to deal with things. This is me trying to read between the lines, by the way, but I’m only assessing things based on what happened. I would also add that just because Anton signs the document, it doesn’t make him a crook. Do you want proof of that? You’ll find it in Anton not taking the money from Vicente and his grandson, Tonin. That clearly tells you our vet is actually a good person, who’s free of any greed.

Does Anton go to jail?

Unfortunately for Anton, instead of giving him his peace back, signing the document only increased Anton’s level of anxiety. That has a lot to do with Nuno reporting the Andradas, who prevent him from doing his job properly. With an investigation of the scam kicking off, Anton realizes he will eventually have to face legal trouble for signing that thing. Several conversations with Miguel—who’s still trying to get back with Uxia—further confirm that, for what Anton has done, he’s looking at possible jail time. Despite his own trouble, Anton does help Victor and Anna when they come back to the clinic with Carmen, this time to put her to sleep. Victor is heartbroken and can’t accept it, but Anton makes him realize the necessity of closing circles (of life, I suppose). That also helps Uxia, who ultimately chooses not to be with either Miguel or Nuno. In what I thought to be the most endearing scene of the entire show, we see Victor, Anton, and Uxia at a karaoke bar. Hilariously, the psychiatrist, to whom Anton (and Uxia as well) goes for therapy, is there as well, and the show runs a little gag about that. 

In order to make a good impression, Anton bribes Fermin and Loles to bring their goat to Kawanda on the day of an inspection done by one German, Leon. The whole subplot of the Germán facing a lot of trouble over the course of a day—where he has to change his shirt because of Angela dropping hot coffee on his blazer, his wallet getting ruined thanks to that, Anton and Uxia taking him to the bar (in the countryside, where Sabela works), and then having to party on the road with Tonin—doesn’t quite make sense. I get that it’s an attempt at absurd comedy, but it really doesn’t work in favor of this story. 

What does work for the story is giving Vicente a proper redemption arc, which begins with him seeking Anton’s help saving his really sick cow, Ophelia. Anton takes Uxia along with him, who’s really mad at her uncle for not telling her about the impending legal trouble he’s going to face (Sabela is also mad at Anton for the same reason). Anton does manage to save Ophelia after doing the kind of thing you wouldn’t see many vets do—yes, I’m talking about sucking the infected fluid out using his own mouth because there’s no milking machine around. We also meet Adela, (most likely) Vicente’s sister, who has dementia and can only recognize Ophelia; Anton seems to know her, and this makes the character of Vicente further human. Vicente ultimately proves to be a hero when he chooses to save Anton by taking the blame on himself. He tells the judge that he forged Anton’s signature, leading to Anton being let off the hook and his public defender lawyer winning his first case. To Anton’s delight, Sabela also makes up with him. Uxia, unfortunately, gets fired from Kawanda, all thanks to the report given by the German, I suppose. While I thought she might survive after finding out the Kawanda management is doing a fraud by marketing the same treat as different things for different animals, that plot doesn’t go anywhere. Neither does the dog epidemic subplot, related to that. Uxia has to go, and while she’s going to miss everyone at Kawanda so much, it’s also a chance for her to start things afresh. Anton even presents her a mug with “Today is the first day of the rest of your life” written on it. 

And finally, does Anton quit his job? 

Whether he admits it or not, Anton is a part of the Kawanda family now, so he continues even after his niece leaves. But when Uxia sees him and asks how it’s going with the new manager, Anton doesn’t seem too happy. We realize why when we meet the new manager, a woman who doesn’t seem to care about either the animals or the clients; in fact, she wants to make sure the pets stay sick so that their parents keep coming back. When she asks Anton (whom she calls Antonio, just to be more annoying) whether he is on board with that or not, we don’t see Anton responding yes or no. What we get to see is him screaming the hell out on the bridge where he usually goes to scream (also a mechanism for coping with the anxiety). That does suggest Anton is staying on for the time being. It also opens up a strong possibility for a second season, where we’ll see how Anton deals with this new manager and her antics. I’m sure Uxia, despite getting fired, will also be back in some capacity. Anton and Sabela’s relationship will also develop further, which will be interesting to watch. Let’s hope Netflix doesn’t axe the show and gives it another season. Old Dog, New Tricks is no masterpiece, and it does have its flaws, but in the moments it shines, it really sparkles.

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