House cat

House cats are creatures found in the Commonwealth in 2287.

Background
Before the Great War, domestic cats were one of the most popular household pets owned by humans. They were known for their companionship and for hunting common household pests, such as rats. Cats survived the nuclear holocaust, but were hunted down by the post-War survivors for their meat and fur. This does not mean, however, that cats are extinct. Several specimens have been spotted around the wastelands, particularly in the Commonwealth. Like before the war, cats are usually found in human settlements or wherever people are living.

Cats were experimented with by the scientists at Mariposa Military Base and Vault 87. The cats were thrown into the FEV vats with humans, dogs and other animals, creating centaurs. The Institute was also known to experiment with cats, as evidenced by the fact that many dead house cats can be found in their FEV labs at their headquarters.

Biology
Small, four-legged felines that meow and purr. Cats have a tail, pointy ears and whiskers. There are different breeds of cats found across the United States.

Gameplay attributes
Cats appear as feral animals and are kept by NPCs as pets. Cats cannot engage in combat, and as such will normally flee when confronted with combat situations. One exception is when the perk Animal Friend is used on a cat, in which case enemies may attack the cat as though it were a threat, despite it being unable to engage in combat.

Cats play a larger role in the Wasteland Workshop add-on, where they can be domesticated with a cat cage. Once caught, the cat will join the settlement and will add 10 bonus happiness points to the settlement (as much as some tier 1-2 stores). A beta wave emitter is not necessary to tame them. Also, unlike all other captures, cats captured this way are essential.

Cats will tend to a cat bowl as a brahmin attends to a feeding trough. This can be used to control where in the settlement a cat stays, for example to ensure that a cat lives in a particular house. Cats can often be found outside settlement boundaries in the event that the settlement is attacked.

House cat
Can be found all across the Commonwealth, are the most common cat that can be encountered.

Pack cat
Found in the Nuka-Town backstage in Nuka-World. These cats are kept by the Raider pack, but despite this, they are still friendly to the player.

Locations

 * Hawthorne residence - 25 can be found in the Hawthorne residence.
 * Walden Pond - Four to five located at a small homestead just east of Walden Pond.
 * Two can be found on the second floor of Sandy Coves Convalescent Home.
 * Two can be found at the Nakano Residence.
 * A large amount of dead house cats can be found in the FEV lab in the Institute.
 * One can be found inside Mean Pastries surrounded by some skeletons.
 * One cat can be found by the camper with the sleepwalker's note up on the elevated highway between South Boston Police Department and South Boston military checkpoint.
 * One can be found inside the cottage in the North End.
 * One can be found inhabiting the South Boston Church.
 * One can be found next to Arturo's house in Diamond City.

Notable house cats

 * Ashes - Located at Vault 81.
 * Dora - Located at Covenant.
 * Emmett - on the Prydwen
 * Katana - Located in an abandoned shed near the Nuka-World Red Rocket with Luna.
 * Luna - Located in an abandoned shed near the Nuka-World Red Rocket with Katana.
 * Maisie - Located at Abernathy farm.
 * Scruffy - Located in Bert and Julianna Riggs' room in Vault 118.
 * Tink - Located at the Last Plank in Far Harbor.
 * Toro - Located in the Diamond City schoolhouse.

Appearances
House cats appear in Fallout 4 and its add-ons Far Harbor and Nuka-World.