Pack o’ Dogs FAQ
✧ Deciding to buy the game:
What is the difference between the two included versions of the game?
Download the rules to learn more about the game before purchasing.
✧ You own the game:
✧ Base & Complex Game: There is an inconsistency in the rules about the cat cards. ✧
Base & Complex Game: Why would I ever declare my cat “low” when playing it?
Base & Complex Game: When a cat wins and is the new leader, does the high/low matter?
Base & Complex Game: What are some tie breakers for the end of the game?
Base & Complex Game: What happens if a treat card is flipped over at the start of the game/round?
Base & Complex Game: When there is a tie, do I have to play the card I just drew?
Base Game: After a treat card is named, what happens if the same exact card is then played?
Base Game: What order does the “naming” of the treat card happen?
Base Game: What happens to the last leader card of the game?
Base Game: What happens to the cards starting to form a pack, but the pack was never completed?
Base Game: When drawing 3 more cards, does the order we draw them matter?
Complex Game: I’m out of score sheets. Do you have more for me to download and print?
Some of these dog breeds don’t look like I expected. What’s up with that?
What is the difference between the two included versions of the game?
The base game is a faster paced game with less complications, ideal for younger kids. It is best to start with this game to become familiar with the hierarchy rules. When you reach the bottom of the deck the game is over, you do not reshuffle. It does not use the score pad.
The complex game uses the score pad and you play a best of 7 rounds, reshuffling the discard pile as needed. It requires more strategy, like planning out your next few moves, remembering what cards have already gone by, and what cards you know your opponent has.
How long does it take to play?
We advertise about 15 minutes, but once you are familiar with the game, it will probably take less than 15 minutes per game. The length of each complex game varies because it is a best of 7 rounds. We think it’s fun to play multiple games in a row and have the points carry over. Three complex games in a row seems like a good amount and will probably be about 45 minutes to an hour.
Can it support more than 2 players?
We do not recommend playing it for the first time with more than two players because you end up with a lot more ties and running through the deck faster (reshuffling more in the complex game or ending the game faster in the base game). We do have a few suggestions for 3+ player games on our Variants page, but more ties is simply unavoidable.
Can someone who is colorblind play this game?
Yes, they can! There are four colors of animals you need to distinguish: red, yellow, white, and black. Red are on a light red background, yellow are on green, white are on light blue, and black are on gray. If you have difficulty distinguishing between these colors, each color also has a uniquely shaped border!
Red: triangle zigzag
Yellow: square zigzag
White: straight line with triangles
Black: straight line with squares
Reference Cards: solid dark purple (no shape)
Treat: all four borders
How much space does it take up on the table?
Not very much space at all. There is a draw pile, a discard pile, and up to three cards face up on the table. In the base game you each have a score pile and in the complex game you have the score pad.
Is it CPSIA compliant?
Yes, this game has been tested by a third-party company, certifying it CPSIA compliant. This means it is lead free and phthalate free (DEHP, DBP, BBP, DINP, DIDP, & DnOP). All games and toys sold in the USA must be CPSIA compliant if they are intended for anyone under the age of 13.
Do the rules come in multiple languages?
The rules are only available in English at the moment.
Base & Complex Game: There is an inconsistency in the rules about the cat cards.
In the rules we say “in a situation where high card wins, the high/low statement tells you if the cat is acting as a 0 or as an 11.” but then in the FAQ at the end we say that a cat neighboring a 10 is always acting as an “11” regardless of the high/low statement and a cat neighboring a 1 is always acting as “0”. We would like to amend this example to say cats are always neighbors to 1 and 10 regardless of the high/low statement, but are not always acting as an “11” or “0”. Here is the same example given in the rule FAQ but with the correct information:
e.g. The Leader is a Black 1. A Black Cat and a Black 2 are played, who wins?
Well, that depends on if the cat was declared high or low. The Black Cat is still a neighbor to the Black 1 regardless of the high/low statement. Since the Black 2 is also a neighbor, this is a “tie” and you must go down the hierarchy to break the tie, to “high card wins”.
If high: the Black Cat wins.
If low: the Black 2 wins (and in the base game the cat runs away to the discard instead of going into the opponent’s score pile).
e.g. The leader is a Black 10. A Black 9 and a Black Cat are played, who wins?
If high: the Black Cat wins.
If low: the Black 9 wins (and in the base game the cat runs away to the discard instead of going into the opponent’s score pile).
In the base game, this incentivizes you to sometimes declare your cat high so you can win the turn, instead of always declaring it low on the chance that you lose.
Base & Complex Game: Why would I ever declare my cat “low” when playing it?
Base Game: If a low cat loses it “runs away” to the discard pile instead of going to the opponent’s score pile. This is handy if you already know or suspect you will lose regardless of what card you play. Most often this will happen after you play a treat card. Since your opponent gets to name the treat, you can assume they are naming a card that will cause them to win the next turn.
Complex Game: During the round setup, there are strategic reasons for wanting to pick your card second, and playing a low cat is the lowest possible card you can play. During a turn, there are fewer times you might want to purposefully lose, but they do exists, and playing a low cat could give you more chance of losing.
e.g. You’ve won 3 rounds already and if you win a 4th round the game ends, but you would end up with less points than the other player so you don’t want to end the game yet.
Base & Complex Game: When a cat wins and is the new leader, does the high/low matter?
No. If a cat is the leader, they never have any high/low aspect associated with them, regardless of what was stated when it was first played the previous turn or round. A 1 and a 10 in the same color will still both act as Neighbors to it, and another cat will act as a Same Value. Even if the leader cat was originally declared low in a previous turn, both high and low cats act as Same Value to it (remember, you always must declare high or low when you play your cat).
Base & Complex Game: What are some tie breakers for the end of the game?
Base Game: The player who won the last turn (current leader on the board) is the winner.
Complex Game: Either play another game with the points carrying over (recommended), or the player who won the last round is the winner.
Base & Complex Game: What happens if a treat card is flipped over at the start of the game/round?
Base Game: Reshuffle the treat card back into the draw pile and flip one card over again. Reshuffle the hands and re-deal as well if you’d like.
Complex Game: If a treat card it flipped over during the round setup, leave it! You can try to play the higher card and pick it up into your hand.
Base & Complex Game: When there is a tie, do I have to play the card I just drew?
No. Play again from any of the cards in your hand.
Base Game: After a treat card is named, what happens if the same exact card is then played?
This card would win over another Same Value card instead of causing a tie like two Same Value cards normally would. This follows the hierarchy logic, since it is the same leader color.
e.g. A treat card is played and is named to be a Black 3. Then a Black 3 and a White 3 are both played. The Black 3 wins instead of causing a tie.
Base Game: What order does the “naming” of the treat card happen?
When a treat card is played, the losing player gets to name what card the treat is for the next turn. If you are at 3 cards in your hand and 3 more cards need to be drawn before the next turn, name the treat card after you have drawn back up to 6 cards.
Base Game: What if the treat card can never be played?
If you get to the end of the game and you have a treat card left in your hand but no pack forming on the table, then you must play your treat and you lose. The treat card will lose to everything if it is not completing a pack. (in the Complex Game, it does not make a difference if the game ends and you still have a treat in your hand. Bad luck!)
Alternate Variant Idea: you can always legaly play the treat, but if it’s not completing a pack, it will always lose. You will lose the turn, however, this means your opponent will never get the advantage of getting to name the treat for the next turn.
Base Game: What happens to the last leader card of the game?
The last leader does not get counted as points for either player. It is used as a tie breaker if necessary.
Base Game: What happens to the cards starting to form a pack, but the pack was never completed?
The cards in an incomplete pack get put into the discard pile. Remember that the current leader stays on the board, as well as any other cards that fit into a new pack forming.
e.g. On the table is Red 4 & Red 5 (leader). The winning card is White 5. Red 4 is discarded, Red 5 & White 5 (new leader) stay on the table.
e.g. On the table is Red 4 & Red 5 (leader). The winning card is Black 6. Red 4 & Red 5 are discarded, Black 6 (new leader) stays on the table.
Base Game: When drawing 3 more cards, does the order we draw them matter?
Ideally you should deal them out to both players one at a time (as opposed to one player taking all 3 cards at once). This way if the cards were not shuffled very well, any neighbors or same values get separated. This also is essential for when you reach the end of the deck, as sometimes there are only 4 or 2 cards left due to ties (2 cards per player or 1 card per player).
Base Game: When adding up my score pile, am I counting the number of cards, or adding up the values on each card?
Count the number of cards in the score pile. Their values are not considered.
Complex Game: I’m out of score sheets. Do you have more for me to download and print?
Yes! You can download them here. Also, don’t forget that the backs of the score sheets are blank, making it the perfect spot to keep track of your Base Game scores, or to draw more of the Complex Game tables.
Complex Game: There was a tie so we discarded the two cards, drew cards, and played again. Does this count as two turns?
No. This only counts as one turn. An easy way to check how many turns you’ve played is to count the number of cards in your hand. Since you drew another card, you still only went down by 1 card.
Some of these dog breeds don’t look like I expected. What’s up with that?
Quite a few breeds historically or stereotypically have docked tails and/or cropped ears, but we chose to show them with natural tails and ears in this game. There are many reasons why a breeder/owner might choose to dock the tail or crop the ears of their dogs. If the procedure is done correctly and for a good reason, it can be a very humane thing. For example, some hunting dogs have their long floppy ears cropped so that when they are fighting their prey (like a Dogo Argentino hunting a wild boar), the prey can not latch onto their ears as easily. This can be a similar reason for working dogs of various types to have their tails docked, so they don’t get caught or grabbed onto. Some breeds even have genetic dispositions that cause tail issues. If their tail breaks or is misshapen, it can affect the rest of their spine, and it is actually best for them to have their tail removed when they are young before it causes unfixable spine issues later in life.
Of course, there is also the flip side to docking and cropping. Some people feel like they need to do it to a certain dog just because of their breed, not taking into account what their actual job in life will be (genetic issues aside, a house pet doesn’t usually need to worry about their ears being grabbed or their tail being broken). If done incorrectly or at the wrong time, docking a tail can mess up the rest of the spine in the dog. Sometimes ears are cropped simply because the owner wants their dog to look “scary” or “correct”.
I believe that there is no correct blanket answer to cropping and docking. I do not think it is always bad, but I think that if a dog can live a happy and healthy life with what they were born with naturally, then they should be given that chance. For this reason I have decided to portray all breeds in their natural state. I can only hope that the breeders and dog owners out there are educated and compassionate, so the best decision can be made for each individual dog given their unique circumstances.
The breeds with floppy ears that are sometimes cropped:
Doberman Pinscher, Great Dane, Dogo Argentino, American Pit Bull Terrier
(note: some dogs have their ears cropped, but the ears also naturally stand up when uncropped, like Boston Terriers)
The breeds with long tails that are sometimes docked:
Doberman Pinscher, Great Dane, American Cocker Spaniel, Irish Terrier, Welsh Springer Spaniel, Rottweiler
Breeds with naturally short tails that may look docked:
Pug, Dachshund, Welsh Corgi, Boston Terrier