Pets are a type of Character that can be encountered and recruited in Death Road to Canada. Pets are similar to normal characters in a few ways. They have their own set of stat values, including in combat and personality stats. Pets don't usually talk but are somewhat comically capable of replying to other survivors under certain circumstances while on the road.
Unlike humans, pets will always begin with 2 Vitality, greater movement speed (equivalent to 5 Dexterity), and a single inventory slot. This means they are much speedier but take one less hit than usual. Pets have their own unique unarmed attack which inflicts decent damage. Pets only consume one food per day instead of two.
Pets have their own unique Despair Events. Most times this involves hurting or outright killing other party members.
Dogs[]
Breeds of Dog available in-game.
Dogs have been included in the game since its release. They can be found at Pet Stores, Trader Camps, the Apartment with 'BARK' Banner or randomly on the road. Characters with the Friend of Dog perk increase the chance of meeting a dog, and can also befriend feral dogs. Dogs found in the Apartment with 'BARK' Banner have a 1% chance of being replaced by Lil' Sam Byool.
Their special ability allows them to 'bark' which annoys nearby Zombies and causes them to chase after you much like honking a car horn, or firing a gun. Dogs get a special unarmed attack called Claw which is stronger than a standard unarmed attack.
Additionally, as of the June 2019 ILEUM update, dogs have a chance to poop upon barking. The amount of poop a dog can produce per mission depends on its Morale. Dog poop can be picked up and thrown at zombies to knock them down. Zombies will also slip and fall upon stepping on poop. There is a 1% chance that the poop will have a smiling face on it, which also makes it indestructible.
Multiple different breeds of dog are available within the game, but are purely cosmetic and do not impact stats in any way.
If a Dog is the only survivor left in a party, they will become a 'Super Dog' and continue to Canada on their own. Super dogs can use weapons, and receive a number of other benefits.
Pets usually aren't allowed to raise combat stats, but a Supertrained Dog can raise stats just like a human. One very nice thing about this is that it works retroactively. If a dog in your party got stat raises at some point in the game, it would have looked like it didn't get any benefit. EXAMPLE: Fitness raised from Flashing 0 to Flashing 0. However, if the dog later becomes Supertrained, any of those stat raises will now take effect.
Puppies[]
As of the August 5th DUODENUM update, Puppies can now be found as rare recruit-able party members in Trading Camps. Unlike Dogs, they have a 'Weak Claw' attack which is predictably weaker than the standard 'Claw' attack. They also can not continue the journey to Canada if the rest of the party dies. Puppies are capable of gaining an extra level of Morale, which makes the normally green full-Morale icon pulse between green and yellow. This pure puppy delight also increases their minimum morale, effectively preventing them from suffering Despair Events.
After a few days in the party, Puppies become Dogs. They are still named Puppy. Puppies have the trait, "Growing Pet," and the perk, "Loyal Bond."
Epilogue[]
Possible quotes:
- "BARK!"
- "WOOF! WOOF!"
- "BORK!"
- "BJORK!"
- "WOOF!"
- [Character] farts.
- [Character] licks itself.
- [Character] pants
Possible epilogues:
- [Character] mostly gnawed on whatever he/she could get his/her mouth on, really.
- [Character] marked as much territory as possible.
- [Character], being too used to the freedom of the open road, never became housebroken.
- [Character] spent the rest of his/her life barking incessantly at all the new wildlife.
- [Character] found a good home and happily did dog stuff for the rest of his/her life.
Cats[]
Breeds of Cat available in-game.
Cats were added to the game in a patch towards the end of 2016. Recruitable cats can be found rarely in city looting missions and are always feral. Like dogs, they have a variety of different breeds and coloration which do not impact stats. They have an unarmed attack unique to them called Fierce Claws. This is stronger than the standard claw move that dogs get. The cat will make a "hiss" sound when attacking. Cats found in city buildings have a 2% chance of being replaced by Oscar.
When the change weapon button is pressed, the cat will "meow", this is exactly the same as the dog's bark, except a cute "mew" sound is played. Additionally, when a cat is the only survivor left in a party they will not continue the trip to Canada and instead wander off.
Cats are generally more dangerous. If a Despair Event happens as the result of a Cat's Morale dropping too low, they are guaranteed to kill or deal damage to another party member. They also always have 0 Loyalty and a -2 max Morale penalty, making those events more likely to happen. Cats have their upsides, though - they start with 5-6 Fitness (chosen randomly) and have a +1 max Fitness bonus, allowing them to raise it up to 7. They also start with 3 Vitality instead of 2.
The Cat Lady's unique ability allows her to start every mission with an allied cat, and spawn additional cats upon taking damage. Since these cats are not part of the group, their inventory cannot be accessed and any loot collected by them will be lost.
Kittens[]
As of the August 5th DUODENUM update, Kittens can now be found as rare recruit-able party members in Trading Camps. Unlike Cats, they only have a 'Claw' attack instead of 'Fierce Claw'. Like Cats, they can not drive the car if the rest of the party dies. They have the trait "Growing Pet", and the perk "Less Disloyal".
Epilogue[]
"MEOW!"
[Character] started a campaign of mass murder on the local wildlife, as cats do.
Goats[]
Goats can occasionally be found at Trader Camps. They can be recruited to join the party, but will hurt the person trying to recruit them. They can also be milked for some extra food, however this will also cause them to hurt the person interacting with them. Only female goats will give milk; trying to milk a male goat will not yield anything, and the character will take extra damage.
Finding a Goat in-game.
Goats have a unique Goat Butt attack, which is stronger than both the Claws and Fierce Claws attacks (used by dogs and cats, respectively). They will also bleat several different noises while attacking enemies, and have 3 Vitality instead of 2. Additionally, all goats start with 0 Attitude and Loyalty.
Like cats, if a Despair Event happens, the goat may do damage to another party member. They will not continue the trip to Canada if all other members of the party have died.
Goat Milk?
Epilogue[]
"BAAAAA!"
[Character] became a Canadian goat. Which is just like a non-Canadian goat.
Pigs[]
As of the August 5th DUODENUM update, Pigs are now recruitable pets that can be found during the Barn Rescue and Gothic Farm missions. They function similarly to other pets and have a unique 'Pig Butt' attack. The Pig Butt only hits one target, but has impressive knockback.
Pigs have a permanent -2 to Dexterity, likely due to the nature of pigs being quite stout animals. Despite this, they move fairly quickly due to how they hop whenever they move. Pigs also start with 3-4 Strength and Fitness (chosen randomly for each stat).
If you go on a rescue mission for the pig, the only way to rescue it is to recruit it into your team. No food is required to recruit the pig. If your team is full, doing so will kick one party member out. If you have a team member with low loyalty, you have the option to betray the pig for food.
Pigs will not continue the trip to Canada if all other members of the party have died.
Epilogue[]
"OINK!"
[Character] was widely recognized in Canada as being SOME PIG!
Chickens[]
As of the August 5th DUODENUM update, chickens now make an appearance in the game. They can not be recruited as party members but can be summoned as temporary allies by throwing Eggs. Pukeyballs also have a chance to spawn chickens.
A Chicken can be rescued as part of the Barn Rescue and Gothic Farm missions. After the rescue, you have an option of setting it free (giving the party +1 morale and an egg), or butchering it for some chicken nuggets (3-4 food). Rescuing the chicken for the first time earns you the Free Chicken cheevo.
A single recruitable chicken can be found in the O*P*P MODE lobby. It will always have the name "Cluck-cluck", and will start 1 Vitality and 0 Strength and Fitness.
Epilogue[]
"HRONK!"
Cluck-cluck was finally a free animal again, and vanished into the wilderness.
Trivia[]
- If you win with a 4 dog party (one has to be supertrained to drive the car) you will earn the Dog Squad cheevo.
- If you win with a cat you will earn the Cat Attack cheevo.
- If you win with the Goat you will earn the Goatal Victory cheevo.
- If you win with the Pig you will earn the SOME PIG cheevo.
- The Pig's rescue event text and the cheevo title are both references to E. B. White's book Charlotte's Web