3e SRD:Handle Animal Skill

This material is published under the OGL 1.0a.

Handle Animal (Cha; Trained Only)

Check

The time required to get an effect and the DC depend on what the character is trying to do.

Task	Time	DC
Handle a domestic animal	Varies	10
"Push" a domestic animal	Varies	15
Teach an animal tasks	2 months	15
Teach an animal unusual tasks	2 months	20
Rear a wild animal	1 year	15 + HD of animal
Rear a beast	1 year	20 + HD of beast
Train a wild animal	2 months	20 + HD of animal
Train a beast	2 months	25 + HD of beast

Time

For a task with a specific time frame, the character must spend half this time (at the rate of 3 hours per day per animal being handled) working toward completion of the task before the character makes the skill check. If the check fails, the character can't teach, rear, or train that animal. If the check succeeds, the character must invest the remainder of the time before the teaching, rearing, or training is complete. If the time is interrupted or the task is not followed through to completion, any further attempts to teach, rear, or train the same animal automatically fail.

Handle a Domestic Animal

This means to command a trained dog, to drive beasts of labor, to tend to tired horses, and so forth.

"Push" a Domestic Animal

To push a domestic animal means to get more out of it than it usually gives, such as commanding a poorly trained dog or driving draft animals for extra effort.

Teach an Animal Tasks

This means to teach a domestic animal some tricks. The character can train one type of animal per rank (chosen when the ranks are purchased) to obey commands and perform simple tricks. The character can work with up to three animals at one time, and the character can teach them general tasks. An animal can be trained for one general purpose only.

Teach an Animal Unusual Tasks

This is similar to teaching an animal tasks, except that the tasks can be something unusual for that breed of animal, such as training a dog to be a riding animal. Alternatively, the character can use this aspect of Handle Animal to train an animal to perform specialized tricks, such as teaching a horse to rear on command or come when whistled for or teaching a falcon to pluck objects from someone's grasp.

Rear a Wild Animal or a Beast

To rear an animal or beast means to raise a wild creature from infancy so that it is domesticated. A handler can rear up to three creatures of the same type at once. A successfully domesticated animal or beast can be taught tricks at the same time that it's being raised, or can be taught as a domesticated animal later.

Train a Wild Animal and Train a Beast mean train a wild creature to do certain tricks, but only at the character's command. The creature is still wild, though usually controllable.

Retry

For handling and pushing domestic animals, yes. For training and rearing, no.

Special

A character with 5 or more ranks of Animal Empathy gets a +2 synergy bonus on Handle Animal checks with animals. A character must have 9 or more ranks of Animal Empathy to get the same +2 synergy bonus on Handle Animal checks with beasts.

A character with 5 or more ranks of Handle Animal gets a +2 synergy bonus on Ride checks.

An untrained character can use a Charisma check to handle and push animals.

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