Dog Training (sage study)

Skill at dog training covers the use of dogs as hunters, herders and trackers, as well as combatants in war, with additional skills in managing packs of dogs (especially as dog sled teams), administering to their health, breeding and recognition of breeding and a knowledge of special training techniques, enabling the learning of skills and tricks.

Like horses, dogs are classified according to their primary form or function, based on size, physical ability and training. Their predatory nature makes them well suited for combat, hunting and herding, with the largest breeds most often chosen for these purposes. Some hunting and all racing dogs are bred for their leanness and speed. Bird and rodent dogs are bred for scenting capability and size (smaller, so they can fit into tight spaces in search of their quarry). Among the nobility and upper classes, certain breeds are favored for purely aesthetic characteristics.

In most cases, a dog can be described by its primary function

• companion dogs (low energy): bred by the societal elite; kept for their aesthetic appeal and social status
• herd dogs (high energy): bred to control large herds of domestic animals; kept for their energy and pack mentality
• hound dogs (medium energy): bred to track and hunt large game; kept for their ability to sight or scent prey and run it to ground
• sporting dogs (medium energy): bred to chase, catch and retrieve small game; kept for their ability to execute complex tasks
• terrier dogs (high energy): bred to chase and kill rodents or pests; kept for their ability to outsmart and outrun the smallest prey
• working dogs (medium energy): bred to guard people, pull carts or sleds, or fight in battle; kept for their extreme loyalty and willingness to follow commands

A dog’s total movement is typically 6 AP. It should be noted that some dogs will be slightly faster or somewhat slower, with bonus AP potentially measured in fractions of 1/2, 1/3 or 1/6. This offers some question as to a dog’s potential to win or fail to win races, when trained.

For game purposes and random rolls, a dog’s Intelligence is judged to be 3-4; their Strength, 2d4 +4; their Dexterity, 2d6 +6. A dog’s size will greatly impact its Strength and Dexterity; 30lbs and smaller receive -3 Strength and +2 Dexterity; 31 to 60lbs, -1 Strength and +1 Dexterity; 61 to 90lbs, +1 Strength; 91 to 120lbs, +2 Strength and -1 Dexterity; 121 to 150lbs, +3 Strength and -2 Dexterity; and 151lbs and larger receive +4 Strength and -3 Dexterity.

Amateur Skills

Domesticate I: Subduing and training young animals upon reaching maturity, or mastering wild animals that are naturally able to be domesticated, making them serviceable as working animals. Inherent is the teaching of various behaviors that will make the animal manageable by experienced characters for everyday use, specifically as herding or hunting animals. This includes situations where the animal is to be harnessed to a vehicle and driven.

Domestication does not include training the animal to be a war animal, to perform difficult jobs (such as the complex task of retrieval) or to race in competitions. These are more complex tasks that require additional skill to manage.

When a dog is domesticated and not trained for war, it may be considered a herd, hound or sporting dog depending on its breed.

To rear a young pup, a handler must spend at least four hours out of every day with the dog. This time may be divided between playing, feeding, petting, following or just casual interaction, such as while performing some other task. During this time, the animal may be taught simple tricks (see below), including its name. The full span of time necessary to rear a pup is based on the dog's size (smaller breeds tend to reach full maturity faster) and goes between 8 and 16 months.

If a handler acquires a full-grown dog and wants to establish dominance (necessary for training purposes), he must spend a similar span of time: at least four hours a day for a minimum of 4 months. The handler can teach the animal tricks and tasks (as below) during this time.

Domestication of a wild animal follows the same requirements ~ four hours a day spent interacting with the dog ~ but it's a minimum of 12 months before the dog is considered tame. (This tameness applies only to the handler and his immediate companions; the dog is still very much wild with regard to other persons and animals.)

Feeding & Diet: Given that in most cases, an animal cannot be easily weighed in a fantasy setting, we must assume that characters cannot simply “know” the weight of an animal and thus automatically ascribe a diet based on this. Therefore, it requires an experienced character who has studied animals to have a reasonable understanding of what sustenance they require.

Each breed tends to favor an energy output. Companion dogs are low-energy, having no other function than satisfying the emotional needs of their owners. Hound, sporting and working dogs require more energy but mostly in short bursts or with greater periods of rest in between. Herd and terrier dogs require high-levels of energy to perform their primary function.

Dogs are typically given scraps and spare animal parts at every meal.

Being omnivorous, dogs can subsist on a variety of foods. Larger dogs typically require more meat to maintain their health and overall mass. The amount a dog will eat depends on its size and its energy output, with a minimum protein requirement (given as a percentage of overall body weight):

	low energy	medium energy	high energy
35lbs and below	1% forage, 1% protein	1-1/2% forage, 1-1/2% protein	2% forage, 2% protein
36 to 70lbs	2% forage, 1% protein	3% forage, 1-1/2% protein	4% forage, 2% protein
71lbs and above	2% forage, 2% protein	3% forage, 3% protein	4% forage, 4% protein

In all cases, a dog that does not perform its function during a day requires half as much food.

Handling I: Dogs communicate primarily through body language. They're capable of understanding spoken words but only in the sense that they understand unique vocalizations. For a dog, communication is more about posture and emotion than the ideas involved. A command given in anger might be misunderstood, though the words are the same, because the animal is familiar with the command in a neutral or friendly sense. In terms of this skill, it's assumed that the handler develops enough empathy and awareness of the dog's psyche that, once trained, there's no risk that the animal won't follow through (assuming external influences don't prevent it).

The tricks listed below do not have to be the exact wording given. A handler may substitute any combination of words and/or gestures. What matters is that the handler gathers the dog's attention before issuing a command. This is the most basic command and is usually expressed by speaking the dog's name. This command does not require additional time to learn; it's assumed that, in the course of teaching a dog its first trick, it learns its name and will respond positively to its handler.

Training a dog to follow a command requires 4d6 (minus its Intelligence) days (to a minimum of 3). Each command requires 1 hour of training per day; no more than 1 hour may be spent teaching a single command; and the handler may concurrently teach the dog up to one trick per point of Intelligence. There is no limit to the number of tricks a dog may learn.

Tricks: The following list is just a sample. Players are encouraged to come up with new tricks, though they should be simple, one-word commands that the dog can execute within the space of one round.

• come: run to the handler's side.
• catch: run and catch an object in the air.
• fetch: run after and pick up a single object.
• heel: walk close to the handler's side.
• jump: leap into the air, either to get over a barrier, climb onto an object or
• lie down: place itself flat on its belly
• roll over: roll onto its back, including a follow through to a lying position
• sit: sit back on its haunches
• stay: remain in place while the handler walks away; this command also works as "leave it," such that the dog will not touch an indicated object

Dog Physiology: A limited study relating to animal physiology, allowing for the maintenance and restoration of health in dogs. This includes treating illness, and preventing the effects of poison and magical attacks. Physiology in terms of the game should be treated as more of an art than a science, since even by the middle of the 17th century, many veterinary practices continued to be traditional rather than the result of experimentation or examination.

A character with this knowledge can do the following:

• Improve the restoration of hit points lost to dogs that have rested. Up to one dog can be aided per 5 knowledge points possessed by the character. Thus, a character with 37 points could help up to 7 dogs. Each dog attended with this skill will heal as though possessing 2 hit dice higher, with an increase of 2 additional hit points healed per day of rest.
• Bind a dog’s wounds more efficiently. If the binding is done carefully, in three rounds, the character can restore 1 hit point of damage that was caused by the wound before binding.
• Diagnose and treat a domestic disease. The character will only have knowledge of treatment and diseases that affect dogs.

Domesticate II: As Domesticate I except the handler can domesticate wolves and similar wild canines.

Handling II: As Handling I except the handler is teaching tasks instead of tricks.

Tasks: A task is a collection or two or three tricks, combined into a single job that the dog performs upon command. Once a command is issued, the dog will perform that task unsupervised for a set number of hours throughout the day. The exact number varies with the task and is usually adjusted by the dog's Intelligence score. If the dog is left alone beyond the time limit, it will wander off (though it will remain close to the handler's home for about a month).

Most tasks do not require a direct command from the handler, as they represent jobs that the dog likely performs everyday.

• attack: dog will assault a single target, biting and trying to drag the target to the ground; requires a direct command; lasts for one combat, until the dog's target is killed, subdued or run off.
• guard: dog will keep watch over an area, barking to warn off intruders (and alert its handler); lasts for one day unless the dog also knows "home;" if the dog knows "attack," it will assault intruders with the intent to drive them away.
• herd: dog will keep watch over a herd of domesticated herbivores, such as sheep, cattle or horses, barking to warn off intruders (and alert its handler); if the dog knows "attack," it will assault intruders with the intent to drive them away from the herd; at a command from the handler, the dog will corral the herb, driving them toward a specific location (such as a pen or a barn).
• home: dog learns to return to a designated place and to remain there until the handler returns; does not require a command but the handler may direct the dog to return; as long as a dog knows its home, it will return if separated from its handler (time to return home depends on how far away the animal is).
• hound: scent or sight, and track, medium to large prey; requires a direct command and access to an object with the creature's scent (typically a personal item, if the prey is a person, or a bit of hide if it's an animal).
• hunt: scent and hunt small critters.
• race: dog will perform as part of a race; requires a direct command.
• sleigh: dog performs as part of a team to pull a sled (or similar vehicle); requires a direct command.

Pack Training: Allows the training of multiple dogs at once, up to the character's Intelligence score divided by 2 (round down).

Additionally, the handler may train a dog to recognize a companion as a member of its pack. Treat this as equivalent to a trick, where the companion must be present during the daily training period. Once the dog recognizes a companion, it will allow it to pass in any space that it's guarding and will not attack unless specifically commanded to.

See Also,
Assassin's Sage Abilities
Fighter Sage Abilities
Paladin Sage Abilities
Ranger Sage Abilities