Day-Care Couple
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The Day-Care Couple (Japanese: 育て屋夫婦 Day-Care Couple), known as the Day Care helpers in Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire, are a pair of non-player characters who offer Trainers the opportunity to raise the Trainer's Pokémon. They are known individually as the Day-Care Man (Japanese: そだてや じいさん Day-Care Old Man) and the Day-Care Lady (Japanese: そだてや ばあさん Day-Care Old Lady). In Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire, they are instead known as the Day Care Man and the Day Care Lady, respectively. Since the Day-Care Man's debut in Generation I and their combined debut in Generation II, a different couple have appeared at every Pokémon Day Care in each region. In most games, they are an elderly couple; they are Pokémon Breeders and much younger instead in X and Y.
The Day-Care Couple have also appeared in several non-game media.
In the core series games
The Day-Care Couple (or one member thereof) appear in every core series Pokémon game. They will (for a small fee) take up to two of a Trainer's Pokémon and raise their levels for them. This effectively allows players to train up to eight Pokémon at one time. Pokémon under their care will not evolve, even if they meet the criteria. The couple offer the player the only method of breeding Pokémon, which has been an important aspect of the games ever since Generation II. The Day-Care Man will usually stand outside to alert the Trainer if an Egg has been laid, while his wife will deal with all transactions indoors.
Kanto
The Day-Care Man debuted in Generation I. He can be found in the single house on Route 5. He can only take in one Pokémon at a time. In the remakes Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen, this remains true, meaning the player cannot breed their Pokémon at this location. Instead, once they enter the Hall of Fame, they can travel to Four Island of the Sevii Islands, where they'll find a proper Day-Care Couple. In Pokémon: Let's Go, Pikachu! and Let's Go, Eevee!, he is replaced by the Day-Care Lady.
The Day-Care Man of Kanto is absent in Gold, Silver, Crystal, HeartGold, and SoulSilver. In the house where he ran his business they can find a superstitious old woman who will give them a Cleanse Tag.
Johto
The Day-Care Lady, and the Day-Care Couple as a concept, debuted in Generation II. They are found on Route 34. In the international versions of Pokémon Crystal, the Day-Care Man will give the player an Odd Egg that contains one of seven baby Pokémon; the hatched Pokémon has an increased 14% chance of being Shiny in international versions. In the original Japanese version of Pokémon Crystal, the Day-Care Man instead gives out an Egg Ticket, which can be traded in at the Pokémon Communication Center for the Odd Egg; the hatched Pokémon has a 50% chance of being Shiny in the Japanese version. In both versions, the hatched Pokémon will know the special move Dizzy Punch.
In Pokémon HeartGold and SoulSilver, the player's friend, Lyra/Ethan, is the Couple's grandchild. The Day-Care Man will also give his and the Day-Care Lady's number to the player. The player can call the Day-Care Lady to check their Pokémon's levels, while the Day-Care Man can tell whether two Pokémon like each other and whether they produced an Egg or not.
Hoenn
The Day Care Couple are found on Route 117. This couple has four unnamed grandchildren. In Pokémon Omega Ruby and Alpha Sapphire, in addition to the original Day Care run by the couple on Route 117, there is also a Day Care Annex at the Battle Resort, run by the Day Care Lad and his older sister, where an additional two Pokémon can be dropped off.
Sinnoh
The Day-Care Couple are found in Solaceon Town.
Unova
The Day-Care Couple are found on Route 3. They have a daughter who helps with their business, and work next to a kindergarten. In Pokémon Black and White, the Day Care will only accept one Pokémon initially. Two Pokémon may be left after the player has received the Bicycle in Nimbasa City. This makes breeding Pokémon impossible until the player has obtained the first three Badges. When the player's Pokémon have made an Egg and there is an available party slot to receive it, the Day-Care Man will yell at the player to come over in order to notify the player that an Egg has been made. They stay in the same location in Pokémon Black 2 and White 2, which makes breeding Pokémon impossible until after the end credits.
Kalos
The Day-Care Couple are found on Route 7.
Alola
Because Alola has a Pokémon Nursery as opposed to a Daycare, the Day-Care Couple do not appear in Pokémon Sun, Moon, Ultra Sun, or Ultra Moon. The women who work at the Nursery are known as the Nursery helpers instead.
In the anime
Main series
Several characters based indirectly on the Day-Care Couple have appeared in the anime.
Original series
Mr. Shellby and his wife run a daycare center in the animated series-exclusive town of Eggseter, Johto. While no mention of training others' Pokémon is made during the only episode they appeared in, they do care for and hatch Pokémon Eggs. Ash was given one as a prize for winning the Extreme Pokémon Race.
Pokémon the Series: Diamond and Pearl
Angie's parents run a daycare center in Solaceon Town. While they are not as aged as the Day-Care Couple, they do raise other Trainers' Pokémon. Unlike the couple in the games, Pokémon in their care have been known to evolve.
In the manga
Pokémon Adventures
History
Gold, Silver & Crystal arc
The Day-Care Couple from Route 34 appear as recurring characters in the Pokémon Adventures manga. When they were young, they were good friends with Professor Oak, Agatha, Kurt, and Pryce. The Day-Care Lady was also a great singer, and she sang the song "Boy and his Lapras" to try and make Pryce happy again after the loss of his two Lapras.
They debuted in Gligar Glide, where Gold met them after helping recapture some runaway baby Pokémon. The Day-Care Lady tricked Gold into helping out around the place by claiming to train him so that he could get stronger than Silver. The training worked, allowing Gold to get stronger and his Exbo evolved into a Quilava after fighting numerous Pokémon being kept there. When an earthquake damaged Ecruteak City, the couple sent Gold to find Jasmine, who had been traveling to the Day Care to see the child of her two Togetic.
Yellow and Fisherman Wilton were taken to the Day Care after an incident with Lugia left them washed up on a shore. The Day-Care Lady forced the two of them to do chores as compensation for letting them rest at the Day Care. Later, the Day Care is attacked by the Masked Man's mind-controlled Team Rocket Grunts, who attempt to steal the Rainbow and Silver Wings disguised as the feathers in Yellow's straw hat. After escaping, they met up with Gold again after his battle with the Masked Man. After Gold discovers his talent in hatching Pokémon Eggs, he leaves to face the Masked Man one last time.
After realizing the Masked Man's true identity is Pryce, the Day-Care Couple reveal that they were friends with Pryce in their youth. Due to a traumatic accident that cost the lives of his two beloved Lapras, the couple and their other friends wrote a song to try and lift his spirits. The song failed to work and Pryce eventually ended up a bitter old man trying to turn back time with Celebi's power. After Gold managed to defeat Pryce, Celebi used its powers to make Pryce hear the song his friends made for him. This time, the song managed to help Pryce realize the errors of his ways. At the end of this chapter, the Day-Care Couple were seen raising more Pokémon Eggs as Wilton is forced to continue to help around.
Emerald arc
In Epilogue, they make a cameo appearance in one of the ships heading to the Battle Frontier.
HeartGold & SoulSilver arc
Gold is asked by them to help hatch an Egg laid by Red's Snor and Emerald's Snorlax before they move to Sinnoh.
Platinum arc
It is revealed that the Day-Care Couple have moved to Sinnoh. They are seen at the end of this chapter at Solaceon Town, where they help Diamond and Pearl raise a Manaphy Egg and discuss with Platinum about its relation to Phione. When Platinum notes how mysterious Eggs are, the Day-Care Man tells her about a case when an owner was known affecting his Pokémon's personality before hatching.
Pokémon
Raised
These are the Pokémon raised by the Day-Care Couple, save for the ones with known Trainers.
| Debut | Gligar Glide |
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Cleffa was first seen escaping from the Day Care, where it surprised Gold by jumping out of some bushes. Gold eventually helped retrieve it and the other escaped Pokémon.
None of Cleffa's moves are known.
| Debut | Gligar Glide |
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Igglybuff was first seen escaping from the Day Care, where it surprised Gold by jumping out of some bushes. Gold eventually helped retrieve it and the other escaped Pokémon.
None of Igglybuff's moves are known.
| Debut | Gligar Glide |
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Magby was first seen escaping from the Day Care, where it surprised Gold by jumping out of some bushes. Gold eventually helped retrieve it and the other escaped Pokémon.
None of Magby's moves are known.
| Debut | Gligar Glide |
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Smoochum was first seen escaping from the Day Care, where she surprised Gold by jumping out of some bushes. Gold eventually helped retrieve her and the other escaped Pokémon.
None of Smoochum's moves are known.
| Debut | Gligar Glide |
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Nidoking appeared in a flashback along with Nidoqueen while the Day-Care Couple was reminiscing about the times they had raising Pokémon.
None of Nidoking's moves are known.
| Debut | Gligar Glide |
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Nidoqueen appeared in a flashback along with Nidoking while the Day-Care Couple was reminiscing about the times they had raising Pokémon.
None of Nidoqueen's moves are known.
| Debut | Quilava Quandary |
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Tauros was one of the elite Pokémon that the Day-Care Lady had Gold face. He attacked Gold by chasing him around before eventually being defeated.
None of Tauros's moves are known.
| Debut | Quilava Quandary |
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Donphan was one of the elite Pokémon that the Day-Care Lady had Gold face. Gold attempted to take it down with Exbo's Ember, only to realize that a Fire-type attack doesn't work well on Ground-types. He then switched to Polibo, who sent Donphan flying with Water Gun.
None of Donphan's moves are known.
| Debut | Quilava Quandary |
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Girafarig was one of the elite Pokémon that the Day-Care Lady had Gold face. It attacked Gold by stomping down with its hooves before eventually being defeated.
None of Girafarig's moves are known.
| Debut | Quilava Quandary |
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Ekans was one of the elite Pokémon that the Day-Care Lady had Gold face. It attacked Gold by smacking him with its tail before eventually being defeated.
None of Ekans's moves are known.
| Debut | Quilava Quandary |
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Primeape was one of the elite Pokémon that the Day-Care Lady had Gold face. It faced Gold's Sudobo, only to have its Cross Chop copied via Mimic. Eventually it was defeated after being hit by Exbo's Ember powered up from Sunbo's Sunny Day.
Primeape's only known move is Cross Chop.
| Debut | Quilava Quandary |
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Kangaskhan was one of the elite Pokémon that the Day-Care Lady had Gold face. She faced Gold by preventing his escape before eventually being defeated.
None of Kangaskhan's moves are known.
| Debut | The Last Battle XIV |
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Some Azurill were seen with the Day-Care Couple in the end of the Gold, Silver & Crystal arc.
None of Azurill's moves are known.
| Debut | The Last Battle XIV |
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Some Wynaut were seen with the Day-Care Couple in the end of the Gold, Silver & Crystal arc.
None of Wynaut's moves are known.
Pokémon Gold & Silver: The Golden Boys
In Pokémon Gold & Silver: The Golden Boys, the Day-Care Couple is depicted as young, as opposed to the usual older couple. In Let's Use Fighting Type Pokémon!!, they invite Gold to a tournament run by the Day-Care Center, and in A Huge Mysterious Tree!!, they give him a Pokémon Egg.
In the TCG
The Day-Care Couple are featured on two cards in the Pokémon Trading Card Game. However, both had them named as Pokémon Breeders in the English translation. The following is a listing of cards featuring the Day-Care Couple.
| Related cards Cards listed with a blue background are only legal to use in the current Expanded format. Cards listed with a green background are legal to use in both the current Standard and Expanded formats. | |||||||
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| Card | Type | English Expansion |
Rarity | # | Japanese Expansion |
Rarity | # |
| Pokémon Breeder | T | Base Set | 
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76/102 | Expansion Pack |
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| Base Set 2 |
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105/130 | |||||
| Legendary Collection |
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102/110 | |||||
| Pokémon Breeder Fields | T | Neo Revelation | 
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62/64 | Awakening Legends |
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Trivia
- The Day Care Lad's sister is only given a unique name in the Italian version. In Japanese, English, and Korean, she is left unnamed, while in German, French, and Spanish, she shares her name with the Day Care Lady.
- Similarly, the Day Care Lad himself is only given a unique name in the English and Italian versions.
In other languages
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Day-Care Man
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Day-Care Lady
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Related articles
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This game character article is part of Project CharacterDex, a Bulbapedia project that aims to write comprehensive articles on each character found in the Pokémon games. |
