After a decade of modded quests, weapons, weather, graphics, and so much more, the most disarming new feature modders have added to Fallout: New Vegas might be the ability to kneel down and offer a gentle pat.
Two recent Nexus Mods uploads make it possible to show some love to dogs, brahmins, bighorners, and even the floating eyebot ED-E, proving that the wasteland still has space for small acts of kindness.
CreativeRunner’s Fallout: New Vegas Petting Mods
CreativeRunner goes all-in on detail. The mod packs several first and third-person petting animations that shuffle randomly, so the Courier never repeats the same motion twice in a row. Distance matters: up close you’ll get a head scratch, while a step back triggers a quick pat, with different ranges triggering different animation clips.
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+ 2Companion animals like Rex and Dogmeat respond with unique barks, and every species comes with its own reaction sounds. Some dialogue options with your animal and robot companions come with animations, such as when you inspect Rex’s brain casing. A keyword framework lets other mod authors flag new creatures as “pettable” in minutes, meaning future creature packs (and even custom companions) can join the cuddle club with zero hassle.
Animal Friend – Animated Petting by Hitman47101
Modder Hitman47101 is famous for sweeping animation overhauls, and Animal Friend slots neatly into that larger toolkit. His petting set, done in collaboration with modder Flip777, uses the same smooth keyframes and audio design that define his reloads and movement mods, giving each gesture immersive weight and follow-through.
click to enlarge + 2Functionally, it mirrors CreativeRunner’s offering—you still press the interact key and watch ED-E wriggle with joy at a pat—but players already running Hitman47101’s locomotion suite will appreciate the consistent visual style. Other similar features include the randomized animations, first and third-person options, and compatibility with future pets (with user tweaking). I believe it’s best to think of this mod less as a standalone gimmick and more as a feature in Hitman47101’s fully animated overhaul of New Vegas.
Choosing Your Patting Partner
Installation is simple through mod managers, the performance impact is practically nonexistent, and yet the emotional payoff is immediate. In the Mojave Desert that’s chock-full of tough choices, telling every creature—organic or otherwise—that it’s a good boy is practically a no-brainer.
It's worth noting that this is an either/or scenario, though, as each of these two mods conflicts. It’s just a matter of which you prefer. However, both are also free to try, so go ahead and add them to your mod load orders.
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