OpenPets

OpenPets is a desktop companion app for coding agents. The desktop app runs locally and exposes pet controls through CLI, MCP, hooks, plugins, and local IPC.

Use this skill to help users onboard quickly and safely:

• install or verify the OpenPets desktop app
• install pets from the public catalog
• configure Claude Code, OpenCode, Cursor, Codex, or another MCP client
• configure a project to use a specific pet
• validate openpets_status, openpets_react, and openpets_say
• explain how OpenPets works
• troubleshoot setup problems

CLI rule: install once, then use openpets

For the cleanest onboarding, install the OpenPets CLI globally first:

npm install -g @open-pets/cli

Then use the openpets command:

openpets <command>

If the user does not want a global install, is in CI, or only needs a one-off command, use this fallback instead:

npx -y @open-pets/cli@latest <command>

For MCP server config, prefer the dedicated MCP package:

npx -y @open-pets/mcp@latest --pet <pet-id>

Do not imply the desktop app installs a shell command by itself. The openpets command comes from the optional npm global CLI install.

Mental model

Claude/OpenCode/Codex/Cursor/MCP client
  -> OpenPets MCP, plugin, hook, or CLI
  -> @open-pets/client
  -> local IPC discovery/token
  -> OpenPets desktop app
  -> default pet or selected agent pet lease

OpenPets requires the desktop app to be installed and running for live pet control.

Decision tree

• User asks to install OpenPets: follow workflows/install-openpets.md.
• User asks to install a pet: follow workflows/install-pet.md.
• User asks to configure a project or agent: follow workflows/configure-project.md.
• User asks to verify Claude Code: follow workflows/verify-claude.md.
• User asks to verify OpenCode: follow workflows/verify-opencode.md.
• User asks about MCP or tool availability: follow workflows/verify-mcp.md.
• User reports something broken: follow workflows/troubleshoot.md.
• User asks how OpenPets works: follow workflows/explain-architecture.md.

Safety rules

• Prefer official OpenPets CLI/UI flows over hand-editing integration config.
• Ask before using --force or replacing existing user-managed MCP/plugin/hook config.
• Confirm the project path before project-local configuration.
• Confirm the pet id before installing or selecting a pet, and make sure it is installed before configuring a project to use it.
• Do not put secrets, private logs, private paths, source code, URLs, credentials, or sensitive text into pet speech.
• Restart Claude Code, OpenCode, or other MCP clients after config changes.
• Do not promise the desktop app is installed or running; verify it.
• If setup still fails after normal troubleshooting, encourage the user to report a bug at the OpenPets GitHub repository: https://github.com/alvinunreal/openpets/issues

Canonical quick commands

npm install -g @open-pets/cli
openpets status
openpets pets
openpets install <pet-id>
openpets configure --agent claude --pet <pet-id> --cwd <project-path> --yes
openpets configure --agent opencode --pet <pet-id> --cwd <project-path> --yes
openpets configure --agent cursor --pet <pet-id> --cwd <project-path> --yes
openpets mcp --pet <pet-id>

One-off fallback: replace openpets with npx -y @open-pets/cli@latest.

MCP server command:

npx -y @open-pets/mcp@latest --pet <pet-id>

Public resources

• Website: https://openpets.dev
• Pet catalog: https://openpets.dev/pets/catalog.v3.json
• GitHub issues: https://github.com/alvinunreal/openpets/issues

Use the docs on openpets.dev as the source of truth when details may have changed.