Gale (Housepets!)

“	Gale: It's funny, I believed you when you said this area can't support any more predators-And yet what do you do? Go and get Lucretia pregnant! Miles: Gale, with Maw and Paw passing recently, and Natalie's mom and that car- Gale: Did you even think to ask if I wanted a family? No... you just assume to take for yourself! "Gale's not a pack animal, she's solitary, we don't need to consider her feelings!" Despite everything I've sacrificed for you! Miles: Can... can you turn around again please? Gale: If you ever cared about me- Ever- then you will leave and never ask me for a favor again! Out!!	„
	~ Gale and Miles having their falling-out.

Gale is an antagonist in the webcomic Housepets! by Rick Griffin, acting as the main antagonist of the chapter "Call o' th' Wild" and the Wolf Pack's former archenemy, especially for Miles.

She's a fearsome cougar and Pueblo's mother who was friends with the wolf Miles and his pack before having a falling-out with him, forcing Miles, his mate Lucretia and his three cubs, North Star, Rockstar Hawk and Darth Vader Sanchez to move out of the forest and into civilization.

When the Wolf Pack went back to hunt in the forest so Miles could teach his sons some life lessons, Gale took it as a provocation and proceeded hunt them all down until she and Miles made amends.

Gale now lives in civilization as well along with Pueblo and works as a successful businesswoman. She and Miles are currently trying to patch up their torn friendship, with, so far, positive results.

She made her first appearance in the strip "The Hills Have Eyes".

Appearance[]

Being a mountain lion, Gale's fur is made up of three different shades of tan, with an overall yellowish shade, a lighter one across her muzzle, underbelly and inner limbs and a darker one on the tips of her tail and ears and on two patches on her muzzle. She has a brown nose and black paw pads.

After a not well-specified incident, she has a large scar across her face, from the forehead to her jaw. She's also missing part of her left ear, possibly as the result of a fight against another feral, as the notch is vaguely shaped like a bite mark.

Gale formal — Gale's professional attire.

She's incredibly tall and muscular, while still maintaining a more lean and feminine silhouette compared to other muscular characters in the comic such as Miles and Cerberus. When in her office, Gale dons a black and red suit with a dark red crop-top underneath, as well as reading glasses with a red brim when dealing with paperwork.

Since she made her debut after artist Rick Griffin stopped drawing the character's irises, it's currently unknown what color Gale's eyes are.

Personality[]

“	You know, I get the feeling their relationship is more complicated than can be distilled into a single root motive.	„
	~ Jack analyzing Gale and Miles' relationship.

Life in the cruel wilderness has raised Gale to be extremely fierce, as well as ruthless as any apex predator should be. Even when joining Human society, Gale would remain unfettered and intimidating, which helped her greatly in the unforgiving world of business.

That being said, her instincts as a killing machine are overpowered by the ones she has as a baby-making machine and a lot of her grievance with Miles and Lucretia came from the fact that, because of her, she had to give up her wish to be a mother for years. When she did eventually give birth to a cub, Gale, she raised him with great care, while still teaching him how to be a ruthless predator, and she is very protective of him as he matters the world to her and she's even willing to swallow her pride and leave him in the custody of domestics so as to ensure his safety.

She is a very vindictive person, and she'll wage war over the slightest provocation, remaining murderously vengeful years after the facts should the provocation have been bad enough. However, as stated by Jack, when it comes to her relationship with her estranged friend, Miles, it's hard to pinpoint where the hatred ends and where, instead, start feelings of betrayal as she felt she was tricked by a good friend.

Despite being very brutal and blood-thirsty, she's no mindless brute, and she'll be very cool-headed and strategic when dealing with her prey and very pragmatic when choosing what battles to fight, to the point where she'll fold it if the opponent proves fearsome enough, as is the case with Uncle Deadeye and Bailey Lindberg. That being said, she's no coward either, remaining cool-headed in the face of capture, being offended at Miles not using his claws when fighting her and risking her own skin to put the soft Miles to a disadvantage after seeing through his bluff. Gale is also a capable manipulator and will even resort to outright seduction to reach her goals.

To be an efficient predator and a good role-model to her son, Gale will often operate with a no-nonsense mindset, becoming more barbaric when the prey finally falls in her hands. That being said, she, like many characters in the comic, is also capable of the occasional sarcastic quip and she isn't above attending parties just so she can eat so much food that she'll regret it the following morning.

Gale tender — Gale's softer side as she nurtures a young Poncho.

She used to be far less malicious and was even a good friend to the wolves, showing clear tenderness when treating a young Poncho's wound and, in general, her interests in the medical field indicate a hidden soft spot under her rough exterior.

After ending her feud with Miles, she wished she could be able to forgive Miles but she felt that things would never be the same between her and the wolves, to her dismay. However, the relationship between her and the other is quickly improving and she could, one day, be as much of a friend to them as she was before their falling-out.

Biography[]

Past[]

“	You stole years from me, Miles! Years!* I had to pass by opportunities for a family for so long, and I haven't forgiven you!*	„
	~ Gale voicing her grudge against Miles.

A great part of Gale's past is still a mystery.

What is known is that she has been a friend to the wolf, Miles and the rest of his family for a long time, at one point even nurturing a young Poncho's wound and stitching it into the scar he has nowadays (this would result in the wolf having a crush on Gale).

At one point, she apparently fell off a cliff, but survived afterwards, and at another point in time (or, maybe, even on the same occasion) "Four Finger Discount" Jack and some other people (presumably all from the Wolf Pack) caused her an accident of some kind. It was probably on either of these two occasions that Gale got the huge scar on her face.

Gale, Miles and Lucretia had agreed that the forest they inhabited didn't have enough resources for more predators and that they shouldn't start families, even if Gale really wished she could mother some cubs, even passing on multiple chances to mate.

Gale angry — Gale's falling out with Miles.

When more than one tragedy befell the wolves, Miles decided to build a family with Lucretia and get her pregnant. Gale felt betrayed, feeling that Miles had selfishly broken their agreement without thinking about Gale's own longing for a family. Miles tried to justify himself, but an enraged Gale yelled at him to leave her.

Miles, Lucretia and their children left the forest to move to the nearby town of Babylon Gardens, as Miles had read many books and thought he could fit in with the Humans. Eventually, the family was taken in by the Equal Chance Program, led by multi-billionaire ferret Keene Milton, and integrated into society. In spite of how upset she was at Miles, what hurt Gale the most was that he hadn't told her a goodbye before leaving the forest.

With the wolves no longer there, Gale could finally start a family like she always wanted, mated with an unknown male, and became the single mother to Pueblo, who is still a cub as of the comic's events.

Housepets![]

Vs. the Wolves[]

“	Gale: Oh no they don't! They ceded this territory years ago! They do not get to walk in like they own the place again, not without a fight! Pueblo: I don't think so. Gale: Then yes, what I said applies.	„
	~ Gale, seeing Miles and his family return to the forest.

After the events of "Temple Crashers 2", Keene had retired to the suburbs with his boyfriend, Breel and left the ECP to the leadership of his sister, Lana. The various animals the ECP had harbored were never planned to be kept dependent and stationary forever and Lana informed the Wolf Pack that they needed to find themselves some jobs in the human world.

Miles had applied for a job as a teacher while his three sons, North Star, Rockstar Hawk and Darth Vader Sanchez, were enlisted to a public school. The rebellious cubs, however, didn't want to attend school and Miles was uncertain of how to convince them. With advice from his housemate, the corgi King Milton, Miles took his entire family (save for Natalie, who had already found a job) to the forest, where they'd have to hunt to eat; that way, he would've had reminded his sons of how unforgiving the wilderness was compared to civilization, while King would've had a chance to go camping with his wife, Bailey and his own pups, Ace, Olive and Rook.

Miles, however, had reentered Gale's territory for the first time in years and, when Pueblo notified his mother of the wolves' presence, Gale took it as an affront to her and, after making sure the powerful Uncle Deadeye wasn't with them, decided to hunt down the pack and have her revenge on Miles.

The wolves prepared to hunt and split up in small groups. Even if Pueblo insisted on going for the kill right away, as his mom was strong enough, Gale knew that the wolves could easily defeat them with the right coordination and tactics (even if most of them appeared to be incompetent) so she opted for a more strategic, stealthy approach and prey on them one by one.

Gale capture — Gale picking Daryl as her first victim.

Her first two victims were Daryl and the other Daryl. She ambushed them from the trees, knocking the two Daryls unconscious and dragging them back to her cave where she trapped them in a large pit. The fit Daryl was restrained with rope, while the fat Daryl was left free to roam, but didn't as Gale said she'd bring him dinner, using his love for food to manipulate him.

Her next two targets were the younglings Rockstar Hawk and Darth Vader Sanchez, who were, in turn, setting their eyes on potential prey: the bunny Zach Arbelt and his many, unwanted followers in the forest. Rockstar sent DeeVee to block out the critters' escape while he prepared to pounce for the kill, and Gale proceeded to attack the latter soon as he was alone. Gale then sent Pueblo to introduce himself to Rockstar and loudly exclaim the wolf's goals, so that the critters would be alerted and Rockstar's hunting attempt would be ruined. The enraged wolf cub then chased Pueblo, who was actually luring Rockstar right into his mother's claws and Gale proceeded to beat him and imprison him in the pit with DeeVee and the two Daryls, the wolf cubs now finally eager to go to school instead.

Gale then confronted "Four Finger Discount" Jack, who tried to counter her ambush, but grossly underestimated her size due to how light she sounded. Recognizing Gale, Jack tried to specify that he wasn't necessarily the one responsible for Gale's unexplained accident and then, when told that Gale was actually upset over the pack hunting on her territory, he threw Miles under the truck. Immediately ashamed over his cowardice, Jack changed his mind and squared up to fight Gale, but, since his right arm is missing, she easily defeated him by always standing to his right.

North Star and Poncho started worrying over Jack's disappearance, when North Star noticed elk tracks, which had actually been dug by Gale with a trowel to lure them, and assumed that the other wolves had followed those. Poncho, however, was far more experienced and could recognize that an elk wouldn't have roamed there with Jack in the open and that the tracks barely smelt of elk. Due to having played a lot of "Survival Simulator 2015", Poncho and North Star were able to create an elaborate trap in five minutes to trick Gale. They pretended to split up and built a fake Poncho using foliage and his trademark poncho and Gale proceeded to pounce at the dummy. Immediately realizing her mistake, she ran for it, but was caught in a booby trap and left bound by rope and hung upside-down. Poncho recognized the cougar to be his old crush and tried to talk a baffled North Star into forgiving her. Gale then noticed that Pueblo was cutting the rope binding her with a sharp rock and, to distract the wolves from him and ensure they'd be in punching distance, Gale started flirting with Poncho, only to then beat him and North Star senseless as soon as she was freed.

Miles soon got worried, as it had gotten late and none of the hunters had returned to the camp and went to look for them, asking Lucretia to look after King and his family. Lucretia, however, had been fiercely wrestling Gale, but was captured and, as a last resort, tried to bite the puma's hand to be freed, but Gale didn't flinch and help a cry of pain so as to not be noticed by Miles. Gale tried to abduct King, Bailey and their pups as well while they were sleeping, but Bailey quickly woke up, grabbed Gale by the neck and threatened to mutilate her if she touched her pups. Startled, Gale decided to leave the dogs be.

“	Miles: Gale! I thought you wanted to talk! Gale: Oh, I'm sorry. "Miles, you've tried to screw me over for the last time, so I'm gonna kill you." How's that? Miles: Thanks for clarifying.	„
	~ Gale as she wrestles Miles.

Miles kept looking for his family, but eventually fell in despair as his shouting met no response. The desperate wolf was greeted by Gale, who rubbed in how much it hurts to be left with no family, as she had felt in the past. To Gale's annoyance, Miles too was surprised that she was still alive after all those years. Gale gave Miles an ultimatum and told him to meet her in her cave.

There, Miles found his family, imprisoned in the pit, and realized Gale was behind their disappearances. In spite of Miles' family trying to warn him, Gale sneak-attacked him and a fight broke out. Miles tried to apologize, but Gale was far past forgiving after all the family-less years she had spent because of him and was determined to kill him right there and then. Miles then tried to appeal to Gale's motherly instincts and remind her of what the gruesome spectacle was doing to Pueblo, but that didn't work either, as the cub was having a blast.

Gale continued voicing her grievances with her former friend and the battle continue, with Miles obviously holding back, to Gale's insult. Miles finally grabbed Gale, lifted her above his head and threatened her that he'd throw her in the pit and let his entire family take care of her if she didn't surrender. Gale, however, saw through Miles' bluff and shifted her weight towards the pit, making Miles struggle as he tried to not make her fall. The tides now turned, the wolf was left at Gale's mercy and the cougar proceeded to strangle him.

A dying Miles managed to give his sons one last, tender talk, apologizing for endangering them, but being glad that now they had seen that life in society was better than in the wild. As soon as she heard that joining civilization had been an option all along, she stopped strangling Miles, let him and his family go and left the forest with Pueblo to join civilization as well.

Redemption and Life in Babylon Gardens[]

“	Miles: I honestly thought you'd go to nursing school. Gale: I still might, but when I saw the cost I figured, I should mark my territory in the field of human money-making first. Seems dumb but whatever.	„
	~ Gale discussing her career path with Miles.

Gale and Pueblo presumably joined the ECP to be integrated into society and, six months later, Gale is now a successful businesswoman and share-holder thanks to her cunning and intimidation skills, while still keeping Pueblo in her office so he can tell her when she's going overboard with the latter. She, however, plans to use the money she's gaining to eventually attend nursing school.

Gale redemption — Gale and Miles patching up their broken friendships.

Things have mellowed out considerably between her and Miles, who has now found a job (in his case, as a teacher) as have the rest of the wolves. She wishes she could just forgive Miles and leave everything behind them, but doesn't know how to make things go back to how they used to be before their falling-out. In her last interaction with Miles, however, she accepted his invite to a thanksgiving dinner the wolves would be having and their relationship seemed to be stirring back on the right track.

Gale was last seen leaving Pueblo in the custody of Grape Jelly and Peanut Butter Sandwich, who work as part-time puppy-sitters, while she went to work and the two would involve Pueblo, along with the wolf cubs and King and Bailey's pups, in a game of "Imaginate!" where they reenacted the movie Jurassic Park.

That Evening, Gale went to retrieve Pueblo and had an unpleasant run-in with Bailey, her new sitcom archenemy. Bailey taunted Gale about how she, a fierce predator, leaves her son to be protected by small pets while she's at work. Gale retorts that her son is tough and can fend for himself, but, to her annoyance, she's immediately proved wrong when Ace declared Pueblo as her new boyfriend and the scared puma cub asked his mom for help.

Powers and Abilities[]

“	Pueblo: Why don't you pounce'm all now? You're much stronger! Gale: No! We have to be smart about our attack and take them out one by one.	„
	~ Gale and Pueblo discussing how to defeat the wolves.

Peak physical condition:
- Strength and Resilience: Although she's stated to not be as strong as Miles, Gale, nevertheless, is a force to be reckoned with, as her muscular build indicates. She can easily snap thick branches and easily every wolf other than Miles, as well as carry them back to her cave high on the mountain, including the incredibly overweight Daryl. When she tries to pounce Poncho, it's described as a pounce capable of shattering a spine. She is also very resilient, as she has apparently survived falling of a cliff in the past and she has a great resistance to pain, managing to keep quiet when Lucretia bit her viciously and managing to stitch her own face without any apparent pain.
- Agility, Reflexes and Stealth: Being a puma, Gale is extremely nimble and agile, being capable of attacking her enemies before they can even see her. She has amazing reflexes, demonstrated when, the millisecond she was freed from Poncho's trap, she swiftly punched him unconscious. Her huge frame doesn't make it any harder for her to remain undetected, as she successfully ambushed most of the wolves and was described by Jack as "bigger than she sounds".
- Felid physiology: On top of her strength and agility, Gale's nature as a puma grants her enhances senses, especially smell, hearing and sight (including night vision), all of which help her greatly in her hunting pursuits. Her sharp teeth and claws also contribute to her deadliness, as do her climbing abilities, thanks to which she can ambush her victims from the trees.
Strategical thinking: Like any apex predator, Gale's efficiency comes from a mixture of physical prowess and tactical genius. She patiently picks off the wolves one by one (or, at most, two by two like with the Daryls) and devices many a strategy to ambush them all in a matter of hours, with only her initial trap for Poncho and North Star failing. She is a mistress of deception, pin-pointing what to manipulate each target with (i.e. Daryl's gluttony and Poncho's crush for her) and, in turn, is hard to trick, as she completely saw through Miles' bluff and used his soft-heartedness to turn the tide on him.
Business skills: Through intimidation and sheer cunning, Gale became a very successful day trader, to the point of holding sixty percent share in her company, and she easily recognizes any and all attempts to undermine her high position in the business. Her success is even more impressive considering that she achieved it in just six months after spending her whole life as a wild animal.
Medical know-how: Gale is shown to be skilled medic on top of an efficient murderer. She knows how stitch up and mend wounds, as she successfully operated both Poncho and herself and her medical knowledge extends further, as she also knew that she was in risk of an aneurism when she was tied upside down. Now that she is a member of society, she aspires to attend nursing school one day and attend a career in the medical field.
Limited equipment: In spite of living in the wild as a predator, Gale does possess a few man-made tools (which she presumably stole from campers or party-goers, as she was confirmed to have done with a foam finger and sports cap). Examples include rope to restrain her enemies, a trowel to dig fake hoove-prints and a first-aid kit.

Trivia[]

Fitting her intense and violent personality, a "gale" is a very strong wind or storm.
Gale is so far the only Housepets! villain to be a biological parent excluding Joel Robinson, who became a father long after redeeming himself as King.
Gale is noticeably taller than the wolves, including Miles. In real life, the average cougar female will be up to 1.1 m long, whereas male wolves can reach up to 1.6 m (tail length excluded from both measurements).
In the past, Gale has robbed a tailgaters party and stolen a foam finger.
As indicated by the various skeletons scattered across her cave, Gale is so far the only villain in Housepets! who has a confirmed body count, as the Stranger, Fluffy, and The Forgotten are only implied to have killed in the past.
- If we exclude characters who killed monsters in Pete's Temple, such as Zach or Fox, she's also one of two characters in the comic who were confirmed to have killed someone, the other being Grape Jelly Sandwich, who killed and ate Karl-Lenin Faust on-screen.
  - Coincidentally, they're both snarky female felines.
The crush Poncho has for Gale despite her being much older and Gale even using this against him at one point could be a pun on her being a cougar both literally and figuratively, as "cougar" is a term used for mature women who seek relationships with younger men.
So far, Gale has never been seen smiling.

External Links[]

Gale on the Housepets! Wiki
Gale on the Magnificent Baddie Wiki

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