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Hope Dogmeat is happy forever in heaven!

Dogmeat is modeled after River, a female German Shepherd who was the pet of Joel and Michelle Burgess.After River passed away in June 2021, Joel Burgess wrote a Twitter thread talking about River's role in development. Dogmeat was designed as a companion first and a combat ally second, which is why Bethesda chose a more personable dog than a professionally-trained one. Much of Dogmeat's in-game behavior was inspired by River, who would attend meetings and hang out with the team during development, in addition to providing modeling references and audio. Dogmeat's brown eyes are replications of River's own eyes. Dogmeat's walking behavior, and emphasis on stalling enemies rather than direct damage were all inspired by River.Dogmeat's item-fetching and seeking functionality, developed by Jon Paul Duvall and Jay Woodward, among others, was inspired by River's tendency to retrieve large objects as a show of affection.