So recently I’ve been looking into moving to Alola, my dad had been lending me his Vaporeon while in Hoenn, however seeing as I’ll be registered as an Alolan Trainer I decided to leave her with dad…but ever since I made up my mind she’s gotten really clingy…what should I do? I don’t want her being too dependent on me when I leave, is there a way to wain her off me?

Your best chance at doing so would be to reintroduce your father into her life. Don’t simply give his vaporeon back to him. Rather, make it a transitional period. Spend the next few days or weeks before you leave for Alola doing activities with your dad and his vaporeon so that his pokémon can get acclimated to life with him again.

I would also highly recommend communicating with your father. Explain that you’re concerned over vaporeon’s mental health and let him know that you’re worried she’s not taking your potential departure that well. As her rightful trainer, he should be able to come up with a plan to reassure his vaporeon and help her transition back to his team. He may ask to do some of her feedings and have her perform important tasks for him. Your job in these cases is to encourage her to allow him to do this.

It may be worth it to reassure her that you’ll be back as well. You can do this verbally up until you leave, but after you depart, it may be worth it to use each pokémon center’s videophone to call home and allow your father’s vaporeon to see and hear you—at first, anyway. These conversations, too, can happen more and more infrequently until it’s clear your father’s vaporeon will be fine with just a weekly or monthly call.

Ultimately, though, step one would absolutely be to communicate with your father. Remember that you aren’t his vaporeon’s actual trainer, so it’s up to him to come up with a plan to help ease the transition. However, it’s important for you to communicate with him and let him know what’s going on, and it’s also important for you to support whatever he does to ease his vaporeon back into his life.

Best of luck, anonymous.

I threw away my daughter’s doll a few weeks ago after she dropped it in some poké-poo at the farm, and now my sweet baby says there’s a shadow following her everywhere. I think it might be a banette, and I don’t have any pokemon. Help!

First and foremost, it’s best to appease the shadow, just in case. How you do this may depend on your specific religion, but I would highly recommend using Hoennian or Johtonian traditions, rather than the more western sorts. The reason why is because oftentimes, western religions design rituals to banish the spirit, which—if you are dealing with a shuppet or banette—may only fuel the shadow’s rage. That and shuppet and banette are born from perceived slights and indignities, so a straightforward exorcism fails to address the possibility that the spirit may simply have been hurt. By contrast, eastern religions, specifically those of the Johto region as well as those of shuppet and banette’s native Hoenn, are designed to acknowledge that the spirit had once been a being of love and life. Thus, when dealing with spirits, the aim is to appease and apologize for any wrongdoing, rather than to banish.

Thus, as odd as this may seem, try to find a Johtonian priest or priestess. A kimono girl (or expert in Johtonian culture—and in some cases, a priestess of one or more of the Johtonian legendaries) or a channeler can work just as well. They should be able to help you construct a household shrine if you haven’t already. If you do have a shrine, leave an offering of food (any sort, although if your daughter “fed” her doll during playtime using toy or imaginary food, use a real equivalent) at the altar, light incense or a candle, and pray directly to the spirit to ask them for your forgiveness. Do this every day before you go to bed and leave the door to your daughter’s bedroom open to encourage the spirit to move to the altar, not the bedside. It may also be wise to ask the priest or priestess for recommended rituals if the haunting seems particularly aggressive. They may also want to purify your household. Let them do so.

Be sure, also, to leave an offering and to cleanse yourself at your local temple as well if you can.

After a few days, if you’ve done everything correctly, one of two things may happen. The shade may go away, at which point you should continue to leave offerings at your altar every year (as doing so will cement its place as a benevolent household spirit and will prevent it from returning in a malevolent form). Alternatively, the shade may take physical form as a shuppet, but by then, it should be appeased enough to be a friendly one. If the latter happens, it would be a good idea to invite it to stay. Always give it the option of doing so.

If it stays, then taking care of your new shuppet will be rather simple. As a ghost, it doesn’t need much cleaning, although it strangely will still eat and sleep (albeit keep in mind that ghosts tend to be nocturnal). Continue to give it the same food you offered it at your household shrine and slowly introduce alternatives whenever it seems like it wants variety. Allow your daughter to play with this shuppet but be sure she isn’t too rough with it, and offer it a warm and dark place to sleep, preferably in your daughter’s room. The more affection you show it, the less likely it will act on vengeful urges—rather, it may develop a sense of loyalty instead. If this happens, the shuppet will often be more than happy to yield to your own needs, including changing its sleep cycle to match your daughter’s and helping out around your household. (It is, after all, a household spirit itself.)

If it does not accept your invitation to stay, however, thank it for its forgiveness, give it one last food offering, and send it on its way. Light incense at your altar every year after it leaves. This will serve as a symbolic invitation: it will continue to be a message to that specific shuppet that if it chooses to come back, it may.

I wish you the best of luck, anonymous, but remember: the best way to face a living embodiment of your fears is not to intimidate them but instead to offer them friendship and compassion.

I really love this blog, your answers are always so cool! (I’m the anon who asked about raising a Bulbasaur.) Anyways~ My growlithe recently evolved into an Arcanine. He’s surprised to find he’s much bigger, so he can’t jump onto people, and he can barely fit on his favorite couch; and, Arcanine is much harder to walk with now since he’s so big. He accidentally hit my Bulbasaur a bit to rough during one of their sparring matches. Have any ideas on how to get Arcanine adjusted to his new size?

Thank you! I’m glad to hear that your bulbasaur is doing well—or I presume as such, at least.

In any case, regarding your arcanine, that can be rather tricky. Some arcanine only need a few days to get used to their new forms; others are a little bit … difficult to teach. If your arcanine is of exceptional intelligence, then all you may need to do is give him space—literally. Putting him in the backyard and allowing him to run about may help him adjust by way of giving him plenty of opportunity to stretch, exercise, and understand his body.

If your arcanine is not quite as quick-witted, however, then I would still recommend allowing him in your backyard, but I would also recommend spending as much time with him as possible. Play fetch or other physical-based games so he can understand himself in comparison to you. The more he sees how small you are, the more likely he’ll begin to grasp that he’s not quite as small as he used to be. It’s also worth it to bring him to a battlefield and train with him a bit more often for the same principle: the more he’s allowed to stretch out and use his newly strengthened abilities, the quicker he will come to knowing his own strength.

Of course, I would not recommend allowing him to play with your other pokémon until he begins to understand his new form, but it may help to have them present and provide him with support—the extra two examples for how much larger he’s gotten may reinforce his sense of self.

In short, it will take patience, like most things related to raising pokémon tend to do. However, the more time you spend focusing on training him to recognize his size in relation to the world around him, the easier it will be. It might just take a few concrete examples and physical interactions for him to get it.

Thank you for your advice with Leafeon. I sent him to my sister a while ago, and while she hasn’t been able to go out of her way to send him back, we’ve been face timing and he seems to be doing better. Seeing as how we’re both too busy to pass him between us all the time, is there any kind of schedule you would recommend to allow him to keep seeing me, and my sister’s Lapras? Thank you again!

It’s great to hear your leafeon is getting better, anonymous!

That having been said, unfortunately, it’s difficult to recommend a particular schedule without knowing personal details about you. If your schedule was much like many other college students, then it may be possible to spend a weekend—be that every weekend, every other weekend, or one weekend a month—with your leafeon. On the other hand, if your schedule was like mine when I was earning my first degree (that is to say, if you spend nearly every waking hour juggling multiple majors, an internship, and possibly a part-time job), reserving time on weekends may be … a bit more difficult.

However, there are certainly alternatives. You may be able to visit your leafeon during holidays, for example, and some studies have shown that even doing a video call with your leafeon can maintain the bond between the two of you. Perhaps you can even arrange for your leafeon to come visit you (rather than the other way around) now and then.

Ultimately, this may be a case wherein you’ll need to do what’s best for you. Think carefully about how much time you devote to your studies and everything else you need to do in order to maintain your daily life. It’s sad to tell a trainer that they need to put themselves before their pokémon, but in this case, now that your leafeon is doing better in your sister’s care, it’s up to you to decide how much time you need to take to do all the things you need to do for you.

Best of luck, anonymous, and I hope that you’ll be able to find that balance between following your dreams and taking care of yourself and your pokémon.

The Marill Line

Azurill
The Polka Dot Pokémon
Type: Normal/Fairy
Official Registration #: 298
Entry: This small, mouse-like pokémon is actually best known for its ability to bounce about on its rubbery, nutrient-filled tail. However, it’s actually considered to be scientifically interesting because the phenomenon in which some female azurill evolve into male marill. There are a few theories as to why this is, including the idea that azurill’s gender shifts in response to environmental changes in combination with the boost in energy caused by evolution. Of course, a more practical theory is that male and female azurill are nearly indistinguishable from one another and that many male azurill are mistakenly classified as female due to inadequate gendering methods for the species. A study could be launched to see if the latter is the case—and, if it is, to rectify the situation—but frankly put, it’s either correcting a system of classification the azurill themselves have no concept of or finding a cure to azurill tail cancer.

Marill
The Aqua Mouse Pokémon
Type: Water/Fairy
Official Registration #: 183
Entry: The evolved form of azurill, as a result of a heightened sense of happiness. Marill possess a water-repellant tail and coat of fur, which in conjunction with each other, make it impossible for marill to drown. In the wild, this allows marill to forage for food even in the swiftest of currents without having to worry about being dragged under, but in captivity, some trainers see it as an opportunity. Tamed marill are frequently used by novice trainers to ferry themselves across the water using Surf, Whirlpool, Waterfall, or all three moves in combination. However, it’s worth it to note that the author has just specified novice trainers, as experienced trainers have quickly learned that a foot-tall mouse with aqua-repellant fur may be able to keep themselves from drowning, but keeping a five-foot-tall, 100+-pound human from doing the same is an entirely different story.

Azumarill
The Aqua Rabbit Pokémon
Type: Water/Fairy
Official Registration #: 184
Entry: The evolved form of marill, by battle experience. This rabbit-like pokémon is known for its long ears and bubble pattern. The bubble pattern gives it camouflage in the water, and its long ears are excellent sensors that allow it to detect even the most minute prey. Using both in combination allow it to glide through the water undetected until it comes across and pounces on its next meal. One may wonder why azumarill, a pokémon that strongly resembles an exclusively herbivorous animal, has the carnivorous tendency of hunting for and pouncing on food, to which the author responds with, “Azumarill are native to Johto. Have you ever seen the aquatic plants of Johto? I thought not. They’re vicious, chief. They will eat your arm right off if you’re not careful around them.”

I’m going to get a Torchic in a trade pretty soon, but I’m not too sure how to take care of it as I’m more used to normal type Pokemon instead of fire types. Is there anything I should know beforehand?

Fireproof everything.

On a serious note, it depends on how old the torchic is. In general, the older the fire-type starter, the more likely they’ll know how to control their abilities, so although it’s wise to fireproof your torchic’s space (that is, remove any flammable materials from wherever it will spend the most time, invest in another fire alarm and a fire extinguisher if possible, consider catching a water-type, and so forth), it’s not completely necessary to go out of your way to do so.

Beyond that, the most important things to remember is that your torchic is a bird and a fire-type. Torchic thrive better in open spaces, rather than coops or cages (contrary to popular belief), but a coop is important to have as a form of shelter for the rain. You could also keep your torchic inside your house, but if so, be aware that torchic are harder to housebreak than any other fire-type. In other words, it’s honestly better to keep your torchic in your yard, just because of the flaming poop alone. If keeping your torchic indoors, provide for it a “litter box” with bedding and train the torchic to stay within reach of it. Also, remember to douse any accidents with water before cleaning it up. Even if not actively on fire, torchic excrement can still be smoldering and too hot to touch. If keeping an outdoor torchic, be sure to clean its coop as often as possible and keep a water-type outside to take care of any accidents on dry grass.

Also, provide your torchic with a sand bath, not a water bath. Sand baths will help your torchic stay clean and keep off parasites, whereas water baths will just irritate its skin and lead to a drop in body temperature.

Speaking of which, while older torchic, as well as combusken and blaziken, will have stable body temperatures, younger torchic need a heat source to stay warm. Even then, until evolution, it’s generally a good idea to keep your torchic as warm as possible, especially in the winter months. Indoor torchic can be kept warm with any ordinary electric heater, but pokémarts also sell special heaters for torchic coops.

The coop itself should be large enough to house a blaziken, have a roof, and be lined with mesh, not only to avoid burning but also to discourage predators from getting at your torchic or scavengers from getting at its droppings and food. The mesh should allow breezes to enter the coop to maintain your torchic’s respiratory health, but the roof needs to be large enough to keep the rain off. It’s fine if you need to sacrifice some wall space to minimize flooding inside the coop, but vents or windows are absolutely necessary. Remember to put in a shelf for your torchic and its evolutions to sleep on and provide nesting materials (hay, for example—and, yes, it’s fine if it burns, so long as you’re fine with replacing it). Finally, your torchic’s food and water dishes can be placed inside the coop—or by its litter box, if it’s an indoor torchic.

As for food, torchic typically eat vegetables, fruits, and grains, and they can be given leafy greens, whole beans, shelled sunflower seeds, corn, and flowers. However, they’re not exclusively herbivores, and they can be given meal worms and finely crushed oyster shells as well. (Shells are a great source of calcium, which female torchic may need for egg-laying.) Additionally, be sure to give your torchic grit (also available in pokémarts—it will be marketed as “bird pokémon grit”), as torchic’s lack of teeth mean it needs something in its gizzard to grind its food and aid in digestion.

Finally, as the precursor to a fighting-type line, it’s important to establish a training routine early on. Having your torchic go for a run or practice kicking on a training dummy will do wonders to develop the kicking abilities its evolved forms are known for. Otherwise, the standard hour of training and battling for any new addition to your team is highly recommended. Just note that, as a newly traded pokémon, your torchic will be far more eager to please and bond with you than a pokémon you’ve caught yourself (this is normal behavior—and, in fact, a good sign that your torchic doesn’t think it’s been abandoned by its former trainer but rather sees you as a stranger to befriend), so it may be quicker to learn and grow than other pokémon you may have handled. Keep an eye on it and remember to step in if it looks like your torchic is going overboard.

In other words, many of the things you may have done for your normal-type pokémon (especially if those normal-types were also birds) can apply to your torchic; it’s just that you may need to take extra caution when it comes to cleaning up after it.

Good luck, anonymous, and congratulations on your new torchic!

I’ve got a few pokémon I’m rehabilitating from team rocket after they disbanded (2 rattata, 1 zubat.) How do I know when they’re ready to be re-homed? The original trainers didn’t want them back. I’ve never dealt with this kind of an abused pokémon.

The best you can do at the moment is take care of them as much as possible. Help them to physically heal. Bond with them a bit. Focus completely on helping them recover from their experience. They’ll let you know when they’re ready.

And they’ll let you know if they seem interested in other people. In order to determine this, after they seem well enough in a physical sense and after the inevitable symptoms of anxiety (namely, skittishness around humans, separation anxiety, and so forth) subside, you may begin seeking new trainers for them. Advertise their availability through shelter networks or social media, then meet with the potential trainers. Be sure to do background checks whenever possible and select from your potentials the ones who seem most capable of giving the rattata and zubat adequate enough care. Then, introduce the pokémon to each trainer and allow these trainers to interact with them as much as possible. If the rattata and zubat seem comfortable enough to interact back, then they’re ready to be rehomed. If they act skittish instead, thank the trainer but inform them that the pokémon are not yet ready. A good trainer will understand. You may even be able to set up times for the trainer to return and continue to bond with your pokémon if they’re passionate about giving them the love and attention they deserve.

In short, it’s a slow process, and you may need to do quite a bit of work to determine whether or not they’re ready. The point is, focus on their recovery first and allow them to tell you when they’re ready.

Best of luck, anonymous.

I had my leafeon neutered a month ago to stop him wandering which he did a lot but when we go out he still tries to looks for females to mate with. Is this normal behaviour that he will continue?

Unfortunately, while there’s a strong chance that neutering your pokémon will calm him down and stem some of his more aggressive behaviors, it’s never a guarantee. There are certainly cases in which pokémon are just as aggressive about finding a partner after neutering as they are before, and yes, it’s technically normal behavior (in that you shouldn’t worry that anything is wrong with your leafeon).

On the positive side, neutering also prevents certain health problems in leafeon, besides the obvious fact that your leafeon can no longer produce offspring. That is to say, if he does get away, there will be less of a chance that he’ll come back to you with eevee pups or, well, something worse. At this point, I would recommend implementing some alternative ways to keep him at home, namely fences and a bit more rigorous training. Consider getting him a spayed female partner at home as well to encourage him to stay, rather than wander off and potentially quarrel with wild or neighboring males.

The Clamperl Line

Clamperl
The Bivalve Pokémon
Type: Water
Official Registration #: 366
Entry: This oyster-like pokémon is protected by a rock-hard shell throughout most of its life. It keeps this shell clamped shut at all times, protecting itself from virtually every threat. Not even the most persistent corphish can crack its shell and get at the tender meat inside. The only time clamperl’s shell opens is when it’s close to evolution, when it grows too big to close its shell properly. Before then—and right up until evolution—it expends a great deal of energy crafting its signature pearl. It creates only one of these in its lifetime, spending every waking moment shaping this pearl to perfection within the safety of its shell. This pearl is clamperl’s first and only treasure, an object worth so much to each individual clamperl that it may bring the pokémon to tears just by looking at it. So naturally, the second clamperl opens its shell, the pearl is perfectly safe and sound and carried with that clamperl through evolution. (Just kidding. It’s instantly lifted by a grumpig using telekinesis from the shoreline to be given to a newborn spoink.)

Huntail
The Deep Sea Pokémon
Type: Water
Official Registration #: 367
Entry: The evolved form of clamperl, via trading if the subject has been given a deep sea tooth. Using its tail—which is shaped like a small fish—huntail glides through the murky depths of the sea and attracts fish and smaller water pokémon. Once its prey gets close, huntail whirls around, unhinges its jaw, and swallows its prey whole. The act of unhinging its jaw opens its mouth wide, almost to unnatural degrees, and it can be quite alarming to watch. However, despite this ability and huntail’s already alarming appearance, huntail is not the most horrifying deep-sea creature in existence. That particular note of recognition goes to…

Gorebyss
The South Sea Pokémon
Type: Water
Official Registration #: 368
Entry: The evolved form of clamperl, via trading if the subject has been given a deep sea scale. This beautiful pokémon glides elegantly through the depths of warm oceans. Its brilliant, pink or golden scales shimmer as it moves—especially during the spring, when its coloration turns even more vivid. This change in color is likely because spring is typically the beginning of the mating season for most other water-types, a time when they are largely distracted and unable to notice a passing gorebyss until it stabs its thin, dagger-like mouth into their potential mates’ bodies and drains them of all their bodily fluids.

What kind of toys are suitable for two baby woopers to play with together?

It’s important to remember that wooper don’t have arms, which sounds like stating the obvious, but it’s very easy to forget how, specifically, all wooper interact with objects given to them.

That is to say, don’t give your baby wooper anything that can fit in their mouths. They will very likely try to eat them. Yet at the same time, it’s also fine to give them things they can grip with their jaws—just … nothing that they can swallow.

On that note, two wooper may enjoy a length of rope to tug between themselves. There are thick, braided cords sold as arcanine toys at practically every pokémart; these will do just fine for wooper, as they tend to be just large enough for them to grip.

Alternatively, provide them with larger floating toys, such as inflated beach balls, inner tubes, or pool noodles. Wooper will often push these about their ponds or to each other, and even just one pool noodle will provide endless hours of fun for them. Just be sure that your wooper don’t attempt to bite off chunks as they get older. Most will understand that their toys are not for eating as they age, but keep an eye out if one or both of your wooper turn out to have voracious appetites.

Finally, in their habitats, it’s worth constructing small hiding spots or play equipment such as artificial caves, and be sure to install a few (edible) plants at the bottom of their pools. Sometimes, wooper prefer to entertain themselves by swimming about their ponds, and the more interesting you make their habitat itself, the more interesting it will be for your wooper.