Recently, when I woke up to get ready for work, I got a YouTube notification about a new video on TedxTalks. I like to indulge in the occasional cerebral engagement in the morning, as I’m drinking my caffeinated drink of choice. That particular day, “Pet loss grief; the pain explained” a talk by Sarah Hoggan popped up, and I watched it.
I was welling up after the 16 or so minute video finished because it was the first time in a long while that I heard someone validate the pain of losing a pet. I’ve lost several pets in the past: a bunny named Ayla to breast cancer; a cockatiel named Swinger to respiratory disease; and another cockatiel named Rose who flew out the window after I swapped rooms with my then-roommate.
I thought about them all day, especially Ayla, because as much as I want a pet, I’m terrified of losing them. I am a pet person, but after this much heartbreak I prefer to be a pet person from afar. That’s why I love pets and animals in video games, and why I can’t see my camp scenes in Baldur’s Gate 3 without the Owlbear Cub and Scratch.
I first met Scratch in my playthrough with my Dark Urge friend. Amidst a pool of blood, Scratch was a white dog standing by the corpse of his master. Luckily my friend had on the ability to talk to animals. It was quite heartbreaking to see Scratch unconvinced that his master was dead. He warned us to leave the body alone, and there is an option to try to prove that the man who owned him is indeed dead. I couldn’t make that decision. Instead, we let him smell our hand, so he’d come to our camp when the time felt right for him, once he came to terms with his master's passing.
Eventually, he did come to our camp, and it was my friend who quickly took a liking to him. Scratch looks like a white German Shepherd, and Larian Studios did a great job personifying Scratch without losing the essence of him being a dog. His loyalty, open-hearted nature, and the ability to fetch make him a great addition to the crew.
Speaking of 'fetch,' Scratch can become a summon. Using the ball he gives you brings him into combat and while being super squishy, he’s very helpful. There were times when my friend and I died and Scratch had brought us back into the fray. He kept us from wasting one of our turns getting each other back up.
But while Scratch kinda belonged to my friend, it was the Owlbear Cub that became my pet.
We first met him in a cave. It was actually his mother we met. She didn’t like us being there, but as a charismatic Paladin, I was able to convince her that we weren’t there to hurt her or her cub. Unfortunately, I got a little too close to her territory, and she got into a fight with us.
By instinct, I didn’t want to hit the Owlbear Cub. We focused on the mother, killed her, and I felt terribly guilty. But that feeling was soon replace with disgusted curiosity, as the hungry Owlbear Cub started to eat his mother. It was then I realized I didn’t know much about these creatures.
And while I was disgusted by the mom-eating scene, I was happy to see the Owlbear Cub later in a goblin camp. He had been captured by them and was going to be used in an animal chase game. I threatened the goblin into giving me the cub. The cub ran off into the wilderness, but not before he got a scent of me so he could track me down later on.
Lo and behold, eventually the cub came to our camp wounded, so I healed him, and gave him some food. He ran away, but eventually settled in and told me that he sees you not as “food” but as a “friend.” He’s there permanently, and then I can pet him again and again.
The cherry on the proverbial ice cream sundae comes when Scratch and Owlbear become friends.
You’re awoken in the middle of the night to find the two sleeping near one another. The Owlbear Cub is having some trouble sleeping, indicating some form of trauma from what he’d been through. Scratch, ever the loyal dog, sleeps next to him like a reassuring guardian. The cub associates Scratch with a brother he had (who, sadly, was eaten by his mother).
The two of them connecting and having their stories intertwine is a small but very appreciated detail that Larian Studios has made in the game. And much like me and my friend, the two of them had become bonded by their adventures.
Speaking of adventures, these two now have become a staple of all of my current and future campaigns. I simply must save both of them and have them come to my camp. I need to be able to see them chasing one another and squee as I get an opportunity to pet both of them at the same time. It’s a safe way for me to feel like a pet person without the fear of losing a pet.