GTA 5 Chop Guide: Franklin's Dog, the App, Tricks and Perks

GTA 5 Chop is the Rottweiler who follows Franklin Clinton around Los Santos, and he is more than set dressing: he tracks targets in missions, learns tricks, and was once tied to a real mobile companion app. This guide covers Chop the dog, his role with Franklin and Lamar, the Chop the Dog app and what raising his happiness unlocked, his tricks and obedience, and how he sniffs out targets in story missions. We also cover Franklin's driving special ability for context.

Who is Chop in GTA 5

Chop is a Rottweiler owned by Lamar Davis, not Franklin. He lives with Franklin for most of the story because Lamar believes the dog is safer there. He first appears in the early story mission named after him, and from that point on you can find him at Franklin's homes, where Franklin can pet him, walk him, and throw a ball to play fetch.

Chop's behaviour swings on a happiness meter. When his happiness is high he eagerly follows Franklin and performs tricks on command. When it is low he sulks, ignores commands, and will not perform tricks right away. Keeping him content was the whole point of the companion app, which we cover below.

If you want a full picture of Franklin and the wider cast, the GTA 5 hub collects characters, vehicles and guides in one place.

Franklin and Chop's role with Lamar

The Franklin and Chop relationship starts in the mission "Chop," given by Lamar Davis. Lamar, Franklin and Chop set out to track down a Ballas member named D. After a chase across Los Santos and through a rail yard, Chop picks up a scent and helps corner the target. It is the game's introduction to using the dog as a tracker, and the first time you can switch to Chop's point of view.

Chop returns alongside Lamar and Franklin in "Hood Safari," where the crew heads to Grove Street for a deal with the Ballas. Early in that mission Franklin sends Chop home, so the dog leaves before the shooting starts. His third and most useful story appearance comes later.

How Chop tracks targets and finds people in missions

Chop's standout gameplay function is scent tracking. In the mission "Predator," Franklin and Chop hunt the O'Neil brothers through the woods. You switch into Chop's perspective, where the world shifts to a dog's-eye view and a scent trail guides you toward Elwood O'Neil. Following that trail lets Franklin line up the shot before Elwood can fire an RPG at Trevor's helicopter.

The same scent-following mechanic appears in the opening "Chop" mission while pursuing D through the freight yard. These are the two clearest cases of Chop being used to locate a person rather than fight. He is a tracking tool, not an attack dog, and the dog-vision sequences are scripted set pieces tied to those missions rather than a free-roam ability you can trigger anywhere.

In the "Chop" mission specifically, spending time in Chop's perspective is also one of the Gold Medal objectives, so the tracking view doubles as a completion goal.

The Chop the Dog app and raising his happiness

Chop's happiness was managed through Rockstar's iFruit companion app and its built-in Chop the Dog mini-game, a Tamagotchi-style pet sim that synced to your save. Through the app you could:

• Feed Chop and give him water to nudge his happiness up
• Clean up after him and keep him cared for
• Walk him through three timed mini-game stages: The Park, The Street, and The Beach
• Buy new collars in different colours that Chop would then wear in your actual game
• Teach and reinforce tricks that became available in-game once learned

Keeping the app's Chop happy carried straight into the main game: a well-cared-for dog behaved better, obeyed faster, and performed his tricks on request. A neglected one would ignore Franklin. The app required a Rockstar Social Club account linked to PSN or Xbox Live to sync with your story save.

Important caveat: the iFruit app was discontinued, with its servers shut down on December 12, 2022. The Chop the Dog mini-game and its rewards can no longer be accessed, so the app-based training and collar unlocks are now historical. Chop himself still appears in the story regardless.

Chop's tricks, obedience and the gold collar perk

Through training you could raise Chop's obedience so he reliably responded to Franklin. Teaching tricks in the app took repeated sessions to fully learn each one, with escalating in-app credit costs, and a happier dog was a more obedient one.

The headline perk was a gold collar. Earning a gold rank on all three walk stages (The Park, The Street, and The Beach) unlocked the gold collar for free, which Chop could then wear in your game. On Xbox that gold-medal feat was tied to an achievement, making it the most sought-after reward the Chop the Dog app offered. With the app retired, this is no longer obtainable.

Franklin's special ability for context

Chop belongs to Franklin, and Franklin is the designated driver of the three protagonists thanks to his special ability: driving slow-motion. Activate it in a car or on a motorcycle and time slows while your steering stays full speed, which makes the high-speed chases (including the van pursuit of D in the "Chop" mission) far more controllable. You recharge the meter through stunt driving: high speed, near-misses, and tight escapes.

That ability is exactly why Franklin handles the wheel during Chop's tracking missions. For the full breakdown of all three powers and how to keep the meter topped up, see our in-depth coverage on the GTA 5 hub, and grab quick console codes from the GTA 5 cheats list.

Sources

• Chop (GTA Wiki). Breed, ownership by Lamar, app behaviour and mission appearances.
• Chop (mission) (GTA Wiki). The opening mission, tracking D, and the rail-yard chase.
• Chop guide (gamepressure.com). In-game care, iFruit app and collectible detection.
• Chop the Dog: EZ Training Guide (Steam Community). The three walk stages, tricks and the free gold collar.
• Rockstar removes the iFruit app (RockstarINTEL). December 12, 2022 server shutdown.
• Chop mission Gold Medal guide (GTABase). Gold Medal objectives, including Chop's perspective.