The Egg Collector

The Egg Collector is a 1940 Warner Bros. Merrie Melodies directed by Chuck Jones. The short was released on July 20, 1940, and stars Sniffles.

Plot
Late one night in a bookstore, Sniffles the mouse is reading the book Egg Collecting For Amateurs. According to the book, a good specimen for beginners is the egg of a great barn owl, a fictional species (previously seen in Little Brother Rat), which seemingly combines aspects of the American barn owl with the Great Horned Owl. (Sniffles apparently does not remember his earlier attempt to get an egg from this same intimidating owl in Little Brother Rat.)

Sniffles' friend, a bookworm, takes him to the top of an old church tower where they find an owl egg. Sniffles snatches the egg from its cradle, but the father owl stops them before they can escape. Sniffles learns from the owl that he is a rodent and that owls eat rodents. And worms. The bookworm faints and Sniffles flees madly, taking the worm with him.

Home media

 * VHS: Bugs Bunny and Friends (1989)
 * Laserdisc: The Golden Age of Looney Tunes: Volume 4, Side 9 (1993)
 * DVD/Blu-ray: Looney Tunes Mouse Chronicles: The Chuck Jones Collection, Disc 1 (2012)
 * Streaming: HBO Max