Dragonlings are, as the name suggests, relatives of the dragons. However, these quasi-intelligent* creatures are much smaller, at about 3-5 feet at the withers (the joint between the back and neck). On occasion you will come across one that still has useable dragon wings: these, however, are extremely rare, statistically occurring less than 5% of the time. This is because they were genetically engineered as an experiment, crossed first with house cats and then with lions to achieve the highly variable species that exists today. See the bottom of this post for traits common to every dragonling.
Dragonling Intelligence and Happiness wrote:*They are considered sentient, but their language is limited, they cannot be taught to speak human language, and unless very carefully educated rarely achieve reasoning skills above the average eight-year-old. They are quite easily trained from hatching and make friendly pets if never taught to hunt for themselves. Larger ones may be taught to pull light traps (small carriages) and might be raced, while smaller ones are more commonly house pets. Some use them like hunting-dogs, though often these dragonlings are unhappy as they perceive that they are being used as tools. They enjoy the hunting aspect, but since it often makes them unsuitable for being pets they lose half of their social lives and unless kept among other dragonlings become despondent. This sociability is what makes them great pets, and also what makes the ones that pull and race happier, as their hunting instincts are not "activated" so to speak. This is further explained at the bottom of this post.
Dragonlings may be scaly, furry, or simply have a thick, tough hide. Some traits are only compatible with a certain skin type- for instance, you will never find a furry dragonling with a raptor tail or a scaly one with cat ears, but below are all of the trait possibilities for dragonlings thus far. More may be added later. Not all have varying rarities.
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_Possible Traits:
Head Traits:
Common: Lion's mane|Cat ears|2 or 4 Horns|Small webbed ears
Uncommon: Dragon Whiskers|6 Horns|Large webbed ears|Biceratops horns|Nose horn
Rare: Triceratops horns|Head shield
Tail type:
Raptor tail|Lion tail|Cat tail|Fluffy cat tail|Dragon tail
Back traits:
Common: Mane|Straight sail|Back fin
Uncommon: Spines|Plates
Wings:
Common: No wings
Rare: Dragon wings
Tongue type:
Short|Long|Forked
Muzzle type:
Square|Tilted|Pointed
Skin type:
Scales|Hide|Fur
Pupil shape:
Common: Round
Uncommon: Slits
Rare: Diamond
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Dragonling bodies and behavior:
Dragonling bodies are thin and light, shaped similarly to a greyhound's, though marked by large paws, longer necks, and shorter heads. On their paws are retractable claws, three on the hind and four on the front. The fourth toe of the front paws can, with a little difficulty, be used as a thumb, though this feels unnatural to the dragonlings and they don't like doing it for long.
They walk like cats and have the same lithe flexibility, particularly the furrier and smaller ones. As a rule they like humans, though like cats sometimes their love can manifest in strange ways. Sometimes they love being petted or scratched and couldn't get enough attention from their families, and other times they like sitting in small or high places and seem to almost ignore their families. They are all truly excellent jumpers and fences can't keep them in.
Their relationships with their owners can sometimes be strange, given their unusual intelligence. They are intensely loyal to the family they live with, so if they change hands it is best that it happen young. They become despondent if maltreated or if their owner is ill. Even old dragonlings can bond with a new family, but it is difficult for them.
The more intelligent and educated ones enjoy intellectual stimulation like puzzles and games, and though they can't speak they can understand speech and writing, and find other ways to communicate. A couple subject to a scientific study in dragonling intelligence were able to write essays with keyboards modified for their paws, proving their sentience. They have the same rights as children, and though the most intelligent are fighting for more the majority aren't aware of their lack of citizenship and rather enjoy being pets most of the time, though this behave more like children than pets when they aren't being used to pull carts or hunt.
Speaking of hunting, the previous information on hunting instinct may not have been very clear. When dragonlings hatch, they are quickly socialized and, since they usually are fed by their human families, never develop the instinct to hunt. However, feral dragonlings and hunting dragonlings socialize their hatchlings to hunt food, and their sharpened desire to chase down animals makes them dangerous to have around people, other pets, and children. These dragonlings are still friendly and love humans, but are jumpier and may attack before thinking when surprised.
Dragonlings have no biological genders, but families usually assign the dragonling pronouns for ease of speech. Any two adults may breed. Each dragonling egg hatches in one week, and they take four months to reach adulthood. Every adult may breed five times in their lifetime, each time producing one or two eggs. Dragonlings need one month between each breeding before they can breed again.
