Continuing my A Woman’s Lot walkthrough, I wanted to spend more time on Mutt and go through how to actually use him.

Continuing my A Woman’s Lot walkthrough, I wanted to spend more time on Mutt and go through how to actually use him. There's enough going on with him that just saying feed the dog and unlock a few perks leaves out a lot. You can use him for hunting, help in fights, finding things and warning you about trouble, but you also need to understand why he sometimes stops cooperating. Start with the Dog page under Sidekicks. Obedience tells you how willing he is to follow instructions. Sense of smell relates to detection, and your Houndmaster skill improves his abilities and default obedience as it develops. Raising that skill also gives you perk choices. Reaching the required level does not automatically mean you've selected the perk that unlocks a command. Feed him meat in good condition and praise him regularly, especially after doing something useful together. Both help with obedience and training. Don't use him as a disposal bin for spoiled food. Bad meat can make obedience worse. You can also buy Houndmaster training from Berthold, Hermann or Nicholas. That's useful if you want help reaching an unlock, but you still need to spend time using Mutt and keeping track of how he's doing.