Breath of the Wild - How to Make Friends With Dogs & Get Rewards

Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild is full of mysteries to uncover, and one of those mysteries involves Link’s best friend — dogs! The ruins of Hyrule still hold some civilization, and on the outskirts you’ll find simple towns with simple folk, and plenty of dogs to say “hi” to. But these dogs aren’t just decorations, Link can bond with them for prizes.

This is super easy to miss, but you can actually increase your bond with any dog in the game world. There’s no way to check your current bonding level, and you can’t train a dog like your trusty steed, but there are still benefits to making friends. Check out the guide below for more dog-related details.

How to Make Friends With Dogs | Secrets Guide

Friendly dogs appear all over Hyrule, usually near civilization. You’ll find dogs around the Hateno Village farm, or behind the Dueling Peak Stable. At first glance, dogs just look like any other animal in Breath of the Wild, but they’re actually special.

Just like a saddled horse, you can bond with a dog — any dog! They’ll even follow you around. Increase the bond enough, and they’ll lead you someplace special.

There are multiple ways to increase your bond with the cute canines. Here’s all the ways we’ve found so far.

How to Increase Bond With Dogs:
1. Stand near a dog. Just face a dog and look at it — a puff of pink will appear. That’s the first step in any doggy interaction.
2. Give the dog food! It doesn’t seem to matter what type of food — though the quality will increase the bond.
  - To give a dog food, open your inventory and select “Hold”, then drop the food on the ground near the dog. If the dog sees you drop the food in front of its face, you’ll increase your bond.
3. [Unconfirmed] Run! After increasing bond, the dog will follow you around. Do some sprinting with the dog and let it chase you.
4. [Unconfirmed] Play fetch. Use any wooden branch cut from a tree and throw it while the dog is paying attention. It will run off and retrieve the stick right away.

Once you’ve bonded with a dog enough, he/she will lead you toward a buried treasure chest. Activate Magnesis to spot the grass-covered chests and pull it out of the ground. Usually you’ll get a pretty hefty rupee reward.

We’re still looking for more bond-upping interactions with dogs. Let us know if you’ve learned something new!

More The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild guides on Gameranx: