Early death dog The early death dog , also known as urcaninus lic morte or simply urcaninus , was a foul - tempered , strong , and voluminous predator . The urcaninus was a nocturnal hunter that inhabited swamps , veldt s , and plains and fed off red and blue meat , which included poisonous snakes , although it was also known for eating aquatic broccoli . Female early death dogs typically hid their offspring from the males to avoid cannibalism during the first years of life . The creatures could be found from the Middle Plains to 30 , 000 league s south of Troon , depending on the season . They were also kept as pets by certain species . Biology and appearance . The early death dog was a large - sized creature , with an average height of twenty - seven to thirty - six mortars , light brownish skin , a beige pelt , small black eyes at the top of its head with periorbital dark pigmentation , a red - colored depilous face , and a large mouth in comparison with the rest of the body . The urcaninus had strong shoulders and arms , a lumbarless spine — which at one point was in the process of de - evolving — four limbs : two clawed and two pawed and an overdeveloped torso with an ancillary pelvic structure . It possessed a retractable tail , rose - colored gums , self - cleaning carnivorous fangs , no hair , and a spiked , pink tongue . It was also able to walk on four limbs . Behavior and intelligence . The urcaninus was a nocturnal species , possessing frontal optical lobes that allowed the creature to hunt poisonous snakes and feed off red and blue meat , although the creature was known to eat aquatic broccoli as well . Its nighttime predisposition made the creature particularly irritable during daylight hours , even though it was naturally seen as aimless , erratic and frustrated for most of the time , often suffering from a psychological condition known as " melancholia agressiva " . Its main habitats were swamps and veldt s , ranging from the Middle Plains to 30 , 000 league s the south of Troon , depending on the season . Domestic urcaninus were known to enjoy scratching trees . The creatures did not maintain long - term relationships with members of the opposite sex , and the females hid offspring from the males during their first years to avoid filial cannibalism . Some urcaninus were known to wear accessories that resembled bracelets around their arms . Early death dogs in the galaxy . Early death dogs could be kept as pets , following proper security recommendations . Caretakers were advised to keep them in high - voltage enclosures , walk them with wide - range laser " leashlets , " and possess trees for the urcaninus to scratch . The creature could be bought at pet shops and , at one point , cost 970 . X * . 000 / 45 , although that price depended on availability and the exchange rate . Behind the scenes . The early death dog was featured in a one - page entry written by Bob Carrau for the 1993 book " Monsters and Aliens from George Lucas " , a publication that combines creature designs and photographs from various projects of George Lucas , creator of the " Star Wars " franchise , with original text by Carrau . Lucasfilm employee Leland Chee , who maintains the Holocron continuity database , has indicated that information contained in the book is non - canonical . Although the entry for the urcaninus specifically stated that the predator did not possess hair , the image for it depicted a furred creature and the entry specifically states the creature had a beige pelt . This article assumes that its skin was furry - looking .