Trainers and their Pokémon

I took two trips through the volcano, and the first one went fine, actually!

I spotted this Talonflame out hunting, it was pretty high up but luckily I have an incredibly good camera, so I was able to zoom in and keep the picture looking clear too! I've always been fascinated by Talonflame, so seeing one in its natural habitat was great.

I spotted this Shinx, and the poor thing evidently didn't notice me, it got spooked and ran off!

I was pretty sure Luxray would turn on me after that, but it actually used its X-ray vision to find the little cub. See how its eyes are glowing? That's how you can tell!

Luckily, we were able to find the cub safe and sound! You bet I gave parent and child some snacks to make up for my interference. The apology was accepted, and I continued.

Near the end of the tour, I spotted something absolutely breathtaking: blue magma. The coloration of this magma is different because of a high concentration of sulfur in the earth here. The Pokémon have adapted to the harsh conditions, and luckily I was in an airtight, well-oxygenated vehicle, so I could fully focus on admiring the view. And look who came to say hi? Little Charmander was very curious!

I was so mesmerized by the volcano's beauty that I really wanted to do another tour right away. So I set back out as soon as I could.

This is where I should have turned back and let these two brawl it out.

Except one of them noticed me.

And decided to give chase. Not gonna lie, I was bricking it.

It chased me all the way to the volcano's interior and I think it was getting ready to pounce. I think that it was so focused on kicking my ass that it totally forgot about the fact that it had wandered into another Pokémon's territory.

These were Charizard's hunting grounds! After a threatening display from the majestic Fire-type, Tyrantrum eventually backed down. It was terrifying to witness, but I learned a very valuable lesson: no matter how much experience you have with wild Pokémon, you should always be careful. Tyrantrum could have deleted my entire face in an instant had it not been for the durability of my NEO-One. Once again massive thanks to Professor Mirror for letting me borrow it.

Speaking of which, here's a pro-tip: never EVER pass by two Tyrantrum in the middle of a territorial battle. I got away with just a few scrapes and bruises but that easily could have resulted in some very serious injuries. I thought there was enough distance between me and the two Pokémon, but I deeply underestimated the territorial Tyrantrum's aggression. TLDR: ouch.

On a lighter note, I got to see my favorite Pokémon in the wild today, and it got so close, too! It's not every day you see a wild Charizard. I bet Marble, my own Charizard, would have loved the chance to socialize!

I was taking some field notes at the research camp this morning over a cup of coffee and a bagel, and this happy little Eevee came over to take a look at my work (and sit on it, as Eevee are wont to). Luckily my camera was on the table too, so I managed to take a picture!

I also saw my Leafeon friend again! This time it was hanging outin its den behind a waterfall, and it wasn't alone: it seems to be good friends with a Sobble! This was the first time I saw a Sobble in real life, meeting a new Pokémon still gives me this little spark of joy, even after all these years.

I'm actually surprised I caught this on camera. May the Finneon rest in pisces. Circle of life I guess.

Thanks to Professor Mirror's brilliant engineering, my vehicle is able to carry me underwater too! I must say I felt a bit out of my element, but my discomfort eased as soon as I saw this and burst out laughing. Who knew Wailmer could just..... scream?

And finally, yesterday evening, I ventured into the arid Sweltering Sands (it's not that sweltering at night, though). As I passed by a deep sand pit to take some pictures of Trapinch, I actually found two baby Trapinch and their mother, sleeping soundly under the light of the moon. I stayed as silent as possible so as to not disturb the little family, of course. What a beautiful sight!

In the middle of the jungle I befriended this Leafeon. It was incredibly shy at first, but through feeding it fruit and giving it time to get used to me, it really warmed up to me. I guess my abuela's wisdom holds up. "Barriga llena, corazón contento," she used to say. A full belly makes for a happy heart. Seems that Leafeon agrees.

Imagine getting eaten and throwing one final peace sign before you get chomped on.

I don't know what I did to piss off the cabbage goblin, but here we are. Local Bulbababy ready to kill me.

Isn't Altaria just gorgeous? To be honest, I thought Altaria's cotton-like down would prevent it from swimming, but guess I was wrong! This is why I love these trips: I'm learning so much right now.

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I'll start with this little surprise: I was trying to capture a Heracross feeding off tree sap on camera, when this little Emolga decided to full-on photobomb me! Don't worry, I got my Heracross pictures, but this was too funny to ignore.

Look at these two little friends, aren't they just adorable? For a second I thought Scorbunny was gonna hog the fruit for itself, but it ended up sharing with its friend Grookey. Humans can learn a thing or two from Pokémon.

I've taken to calling them the Caterpie Quartet, and they look like they could burst into song at any time.

I saw this absolute sausage of a Wurmple rolling on the ground and I swear if this Wurmple asked me to commit a crime, I would do it without hesitation.

A scene I never thought possible: here we see a Liepard, a carnivore known for acts of cruelty and mischief, protecting two Pikipek chicks. Truly makes me wonder how this unlikely family came to be.

I think this picture is my favorite of them all. For a brief moment I felt like this Pikipek and I shared this really geniune connection. It had every reason to fear me and yet it... just returned my gaze with boundless curiosity. I hope we'll meet again, maybe we can become friends.

Cont. I know Gardevoir were recently discovered to be in the Human-like egg, but I still worry given Lucario have a secondary Field Egg Group and Gardevoir's Amorphous Secondary Grouping. i live a couple regions southwest of Unova and we're starting to reach the Autumn months and it looks like we'll have a pair or even Quartet of Winter Babies. and Yes, the pairings are Fem Lucario/Gallade and Gardevoir/Male Lucario.

Hi anon, that's indeed an interesting question you got there. There's a reason it took researchers decades to label the Gardevoir line as "human-like" in terms of egg group, and I myself am not even 100% sure what my stance on it is. Then again, I'm not a Psychic-type expert. Anyways, my point is that while overlapping egg-groups shouldn't matter too much, Gardevoir's primary egg-group might.

As you might know, amorphous Pokémon are physically quite different from other Pokémon here. We're talking Pokémon that can turn into mist, reshape their physical forms, soft-bodied Pokémon, levitating Pokémon. A union between two Pokémon that are so very different in terms of physical characteristics probably won't mesh together very well when it comes to having eggs. That's not to say it's impossible, it's just unlikely.

If you're insistent on pairing them up, I suggest seeking out breeders that specialize in your Pokémon's respective types. Best of luck!

Yeah it was a hoax, unfortunately. Someone claimed to have filmed it but the footage was tampered with.

Hi Anon! (It's Brent, btw, not Bill hahah)

For Riolu, it's not uncommon. Much like with human infants, thumb-sucking releases a hormone in the brain that counteracts cortisol, the stress hormone. It's basically a suckling reflex that some human-like Pokémon display. I'm not sure if the hormones have the same names, because I'm not a biologist, but the concepts are pretty much the same.

It's much less common in Ralts, which aren't mammals and thus don't have a suckling reflex. I think your Ralts are copying the behavior they see in your Riolu, because the Ralts can sense that it has a calming effect.

As for possible negative side-effects, yes, they exist, though this is specifically an issue in Riolu. Riolu start teething very early on. If this behavior persists for too long, you might be looking at Riolu or even Lucario with crooked teeth, making it much more difficult for them to hunt and eat. There's luckily an easy fix to stop your Pokémon's thumbing habits. I usually crush an Aguav berry and drip the juice on the Pokémon's paws. Works like a charm.

Really quick and messy sketch I made while I was watching Monica, the latest addition to the ranch. Monica was brought to me last week by a good samaritan who found her abandoned at the side of a road. She's much too young to be away from her mother, which is evident in the number of tails she currently has. Vulpix are born with only one tail, which then splits as the Vulpix grows up. I think Monica is about 6 weeks old now, while Vulpix are usually ready to leave the nest at around 10 weeks.

She had a nasty eye infection, but after a course of antibiotics she seems to be coping well. Shoutout to the lovely people over at the Driftveil PMC who treated Monica's eye infection and got her vaccinated, you rock!

Oh boy, anon, that's a serious issue, and I don't even know if I can really help with it. The Eon Pokémon are so rare that there are very few studies on them and how to care for them.

It's good that you contacted the Rangers - they specialize in this sort of thing. Maybe the chicks should be brought to the city of Alto Mare, as a Latios and Latias used to guard the city together until Latios sadly passed away. But yea, I'd discuss this with the local Rangers.

I'd love to help more, but I don't think I have anything useful to add, so I'm going to redirect you to my friend @ask-a-pokemon-ranger

Hi anon, thanks for reaching out!

Ketchup is incredibly high in sugar content and other things that are hard for most Pokémon to digest, and Pikachu is no exception. Luckily, this isn't one of the foods that can and will kill a Pikachu (Do Not Feed A Pokémon Chocolate Oh Sweet Arceus Do Not), but it certainly isn't healthy either.

Which brings me to my next topic: diabetes. It actually is a rising problem among pet Pokémon, especially those who get little exercise. Overfeeding, feeding the wrong kinds of kibble, and frequent snacks are all contributing factors to this. Snacks tend to be high in sugars and low in nutritional value, meaning that they should only be given in moderation.

If you want to treat your Pokémon, you should lean towards natural snacks, like berries. They're free to pick from berry bushes (ALWAYS make sure you know what you're picking beforehand, oran is a safe bet), easy to come by, and very high in vitamins.

If you'd like to offer diabetic-friendly menu items, there are certainly ways to do that (and it's much better for your customers in the long run). As I said, berries are your best friend. Check with the Trainer beforehand to make sure what flavors the Pokémon likes, and go to town! I heard that Pokémon cafes in Lumiose, Kalos offer sugar free berry tarts, you should check those out!

Wonder Girl, I'm so glad you sent an update message! I was wondering how you and Angie were doing the other day. It's so good to hear Angie has become the shining star she deserves to be! I'm sure that Sodapop's songs will help Angie keep improving.

Shinx are in my opinion one of the most adorable Pokémon out there, but they can be a bit tricky to raise for battle. This is because Shinx tend to not have great control over their powers, and they can accidentally injure themselves if they misfire or lose control. Apart from that, Shinx are actually pretty easy to handle and low-maintenance, though their fur should be properly groomed often with a soft, non-static brush.

I also suggest keeping Angie and Sodapop away from Denki during shedding season - it doesn't take much for a Shinx to accidentally shock someone during that time.