Disclaimer: What? Pokemon belongs to Nintendo? Oh darn.
Common Name: Houndour, Delvil (juvenile/subdominant) Houndoom, Hellgar (adult/dominant)
Scientific Name: Acerbacanis cerberus
Description: Houndoom are large canid pokemon, measuring 7 ½ feet long (including the tail) and standing 30 inches at the shoulder. They have long, slender legs and faces, as well as a long tail tipped with a cartilaginous spade. Houndoom have two white, curving horns arcing back from their heads, which are smaller in females.
Houndoom's young, Houndour, are similar in appearance, but have much smaller tails without spades, lack horns, and are generally stockier in appearance. Houndour have similar coloration to Houndoom, both having black fur, with an orange underbelly and muzzle. They also have pale rings around their ankles. But there are differences. Houndour have a white forehead, with two black eyebrow spots, while Houndoom have white markings on their chests, in a distinctive 'death's head' pattern. The eyes are red in both life stages.
Both Houndoom and Houndour have a very unusual skeletal feature: secondary ribs that project outside the body with only a white horn sheath to protect them. These ribs are derived from the pokemon's vertebral spines, and overlap their normal ribs.
Range: Houndoom were originally native to much of Johto, but have been introduced to Kanto and eastern Sinnoh, where they have formed local packs.
Habitat: Houndoom live in forests, woodlands, and savannahs.
Call: Houndoom have a variety of calls, including growls, snarls, grunts, whines, and of course howls, which serve to cement pack bonding.
Diet: Houndoom are predators, hunting in tightly-coordinated packs. Working together and keeping in contact with their calls, they can take down even powerful prey such as Kadabra and Girafarig. Like other pack hunting, biocombusting pokemon, Houndoom will use fire to spook and drive their prey towards ambush, as well as to blind their prey's night vision. Doing this, they can even take down Rapidash, which otherwise could easily outrun them.
Of course, Houndoom can also hunt alone, though the prey taken when hunting solo are often much smaller, such as Rattata or Jigglypuff.
Life Cycle: Houndoom are social, and the social standing of an individual determines its breeding rights. This often has an actual, physical effect on the pokemon, as less dominant, 'omega' Houndour may mature into Houndoom later than their fellows, or even not at all! However, these individuals will mature if brought into captivity, which seems to indicate that it is the presence of a dominant Houndoom that retards their growth.
Houndoom are well known for their infighting, with both males and females using their horns and teeth to defend their places in the hierarchy. The pokemon are frequently injured but rarely killed in these fights. The most common injury is the ripping and tearing of ears, and adult Houndoom often have both ears missing.
Hondoom do not have a breeding season, though each female may come into heat once or twice a year. The most dominant female will often try to stop the most dominant male from mating with other females, not wanting resources to be used for young other than her own. The most dominant male acts similarly with the subordinate males.
Houndoom lay large clutches, up to six eggs at once. However, competition between siblings is fierce, and only one or two survive to weaning, usually dominating their mother's milk and thus starving their siblings.
Houndoom can live up to 13 years in captivity, and much less in the wild.
Relationship with Humans: Houndoom are one of the most feared pokemon in Johto folklore, far beyond the actual danger they present. Its hunting howl was said to summon the Grim Reaper, and the pain of its flames was said to never heal. And while it is true that one should not treat Houndoom carelessly, they are certainly not the demons that stories make them out to be. Unfortunately for the Houndoom, this fear has resulted in their persecution over large parts of their range (and their predation on domestic Miltank and Tauros does not help).
Houndoom, though considered difficult to train, are well-admired in the arena, to the extant that they have been nearly collected to extinction in Johto. They are now protected, and it is illegal to capture Houndoom in their native range. However, well-meaning breeders have released their stock in Sinnoh and Kanto, trying to establish new populations. Unfortunately, prey species in Kanto and Sinnoh are not adapted to predation by Houndoom, and the pokemon is now considered a pest in Sinnoh.
Naturalist's Notes: Although they may be found in the day as well, Houndoom are most active at night, when they hunt.
As noted above, Houndoom often lose their ears in pack conflicts, but even if they don't, fashion decrees that most trainers crop their Houndoom's ears anyway.
The biocombustion gas Houndoom create contains sulfur, which gives them a distinctive 'brimstone' smell. To disguise this odor, the Houndoom often roll in pungent-smelling matter. Looking for these rolling sites can confirm the presence of Houndoom in the area.