How to rescue and care for your dog
Complete Horizon’s Kitchen for Robyn, then follow Dog Days into Bone Cave and use a Bandage and raw Meat to help the injured dog. Finish the rescue to recruit your companion, unlock its pack and commands, and use Follow, Stay and Call Dog to keep it away from immediate danger.
Bring a Bandage and raw Meat to Bone Cave
Dog Days follows Horizon’s Kitchen in the Horizon quest line and sends you into Bone Cave to locate the dog. Prepare a Bandage and raw Meat before heading in so you have the rescue supplies ready. Keep some Meat uncooked for this task instead of turning your whole supply into meals.
The Bandage recipe unlocks in the Blueprints screen’s CRAFTING tree for 1 point. Craft it from your inventory using 2 Cloth and 1 Surgical Spirit. Surgical Spirit can come from Medical Supply Boxes and military crates, and Robyn sells it at Horizon.
Rescue the dog during Dog Days
- Complete Horizon’s Kitchen for Robyn, then follow the Dog Days objective into Bone Cave. Focus on locating the dog before stopping for a longer gathering trip.
- Approach the injured dog and use its interaction prompt to apply a Bandage. Keep your attention on the rescue prompts so you perform the care action the quest requests.
- Use the feeding interaction to give the dog raw Meat. Bandaging and feeding the injured animal are the care actions used in this rescue.
- Finish Dog Days to recruit the dog as your companion. Its pack and commands become available once it starts following you, and New Home follows Dog Days in the quest line.
Dog commands and pack access
Approach your recruited dog and tap F to open its pack. Hold F to open the nearby interaction wheel instead. For commands at a distance, use the Q radial menu, which contains Call Dog and Stop.
| Equipment or command | Function | How to access |
|---|---|---|
| Dog’s pack | Provides 15 storage slots for carrying supplies. | Recruit the dog through Dog Days, then approach it and press F. |
| Pet | Lets you pet your companion. | Approach the recruited dog, hold F and choose Pet. |
| Stay alert | The dog’s alert command. | Hold F near the dog and select Stay alert. |
| Follow | Have the dog follow you. | Use the Follow or Stay control in the nearby interaction wheel. |
| Stay | Use it to keep the dog away from immediate danger. | Use the Follow or Stay control in the nearby interaction wheel. |
| Search for items | An item-search command for your companion. | Hold F near the dog and select Search for items. |
| Call Dog | Call your companion from a distance. | Open the Q radial menu and select Call Dog. |
| Stop | A Stop action available at a distance. | Open the Q radial menu and select Stop. |
Carry supplies and bring the dog through fast travel
The dog’s container is separate from your own backpack, making it useful for offloading resource stacks during gathering trips. Approach its pack and press F at the Check container prompt to store supplies. Keep whatever you need for your next immediate task easy to reach, then use the dog’s storage for the rest of the haul.
Your dog accompanies you through sled fast travel when it is following, with the supplies in its pack still stored there. Unlock both travel points in person before attempting the trip. Travel requires no items or Bucks, but it is unavailable during combat or severe snowstorms.
- Have the dog following you before setting off from an unlocked sled travel point.
- Press F when the Travel prompt appears, select your unlocked destination’s sled symbol on the map and choose Confirm.
- At the destination, allow your companion to arrive beside you before continuing your route or opening its pack.
Care during the rescue and safer travel afterward
For the injured dog in Bone Cave, apply a Bandage and provide raw Meat through the rescue interactions. After recruitment, use Stay to keep your companion away from immediate danger and Call Dog when you are ready to bring it back toward you. Use Follow for onward travel, and make checking the dog’s position part of your preparation before approaching a fight.
Petting, multiplayer ownership and combat commands
- Can you pet the dog in Permafrost?
- Yes. Complete Dog Days in Bone Cave, approach your recruited companion and hold F to open the interaction wheel. Choose Pet from that wheel; tapping F opens the pack instead.
- Why does only the host get a dog in multiplayer?
- Each hosted world has one dog, and it belongs to the host. Plan your group’s use of the companion around that ownership. Guests may encounter a visibility bug that shows only a moving harness instead of the dog.
- Can I order my dog to attack enemies or protect me in combat?
- The command list above provides no direct Attack instruction. The dog scouts ahead, warns of danger and carries supplies, so plan to handle enemy fights yourself. Use Follow, Stay and Call Dog to manage your companion’s position around immediate danger.