#0977 · Paldea · Generation 9

Dondozo

Big Catfish Pokémon · Water-type

Dondozo is a Water-type Pokémon, the Big Catfish Pokémon, number 977 (#0977) in the National Pokédex. It was introduced in Generation 9 and comes from the Paldea region. It is 12 m tall and weighs 220 kg.

Dondozo is the Big Catfish Pokémon, a huge glutton that is powerful but, the Pokédex says, apparently not very smart. It treats a tiny Tatsugiri as its boss and carries it around in its mouth.

How to pronounce Dondozo

Dondozo is pronounced don-DOH-zoh. The capital letters show the stressed syllable.

Listen to Dondozo said out loud:

In Japanese it is ヘイラッシャ (Heyrusher).

Hear every other name on the Pokémon pronunciation guide.

Lore

Biology

Dondozo is a giant fish with a light blue top, a dark blue middle and a white belly. A ring of six frills sits on its head, long barbels hang around its mouth, and a long, flat tongue sticks out. It measures 12 m (39 ft 4 in), taller than any other species introduced in Generation IX, and weighs 220 kg (485 lb).

Behaviour

Dondozo is loyal to Tatsugiri and follows its orders. The Pokédex says it is bad at catching food, so it teams up with a Tatsugiri that lures prey, and it protects its partner inside its mouth.

Habitat

The Pokédex gives no habitat. In Scarlet and Violet it lives in Casseroya Lake in Paldea's North Province, and it appears in 5 and 6 star Tera Raid Battles.

Diet

The Pokédex calls it a glutton, and Bulbapedia names Basculin and Flamigo among the Pokémon it preys on.

Powers

Dondozo has Unaware, which ignores its opponents' stat changes, or Oblivious, with Water Veil hidden. Its signature move is Order Up: when Tatsugiri is in its mouth, the move boosts Dondozo's Attack, Defense or Speed depending on Tatsugiri's form, and Bulbapedia says no other Pokémon is known to learn it. Base 150 HP and 115 Defense with a Speed of 35 make it a slow, sturdy wall.

Name origin

Dondozo may combine don (Spanish for 'lord') with dōzo (Japanese for 'please, help yourself'). The Japanese name is Heyrusher (ヘイラッシャ), which may come from heirasshai, the greeting sushi chefs call to customers.

Design inspiration

James Turner designed Dondozo. It seems modelled on the wels catfish, a huge European species that was introduced to Spain, and its Shiny colouring resembles an albino wels. It also seems to play on a sushi chef, with a headband-like frill and a tongue like a sushi tray. These are fan readings.

In the games

Dondozo and Tatsugiri together make up the Titan boss known as the False Dragon Titan at Casseroya Lake in Scarlet and Violet, where Dondozo debuted. In Legends: Z-A it is a Mega Dimension DLC Pokémon found in Hyperspace Lumiose.

In the anime

Dondozo appears mainly in specials: it enters a Video Game Championships match alongside an Iron Bundle in 'Challenge the World!' and has a brief silhouette cameo in the music video for Biri-Biri.

Fun facts

• Bulbapedia suggests that keeping Tatsugiri in its mouth may reference mouthbrooding, where real fish, including some catfish, protect their young by holding them inside their mouths.
• Bulbapedia notes that Heyrusher might also nod to the comedian Rusher Itamae, whose stage name uses the word for a traditional chef.
• Bulbapedia suggests its taste for birds may echo real wels catfish, some of which beach themselves on riverbanks to grab birds from the ground.

Sources: Bulbapedia: Dondozo (Pokémon) · Serebii: Dondozo (Scarlet/Violet Pokédex)

Base stats

• HP: 150
• Attack: 100
• Defense: 115
• Sp. Atk: 65
• Sp. Def: 65
• Speed: 35

Dondozo’s base stat total is 530. Its highest stat is HP.

Type matchups

What is Dondozo weak to?

Dondozo takes extra damage from Electric (2×), Grass (2×) moves.

It resists Fire (½×), Water (½×), Ice (½×), Steel (½×).

Evolution

Dondozo does not evolve, and it does not evolve from any other Pokémon.

Abilities

• Unaware: Ignores other Pokémon's stat modifiers for damage and accuracy calculation.
• Oblivious: Prevents infatuation and protects against Captivate.
• Water Veil (hidden ability): Prevents burns.

Moves

Moves Dondozo learns by level up in Scarlet / Violet

TM moves (32)

Dondozo can learn 32 moves from TMs in Scarlet / Violet: Take Down, Scary Face, Protect, Ice Fang, Water Pulse, Chilling Water, Facade, Bulldoze, Avalanche, Endure, Rain Dance, Zen Headbutt, Body Slam, Sleep Talk, Waterfall, Stomping Tantrum, Rest, Rock Slide, Body Press, Substitute, Crunch, Liquidation, Heavy Slam, Surf, Hydro Pump, Earthquake, Giga Impact, Outrage, Hyper Beam, Tera Blast, Double-Edge, Curse.

Egg moves (4):Curse, Fissure, Thrash, Yawn.

Breeding & training

• Gender: 50% male, 50% female.
• Egg groups: Water 2.
• Egg cycles: 40 (steps to hatch, Scarlet/Violet: 5,120).
• Catch rate: 25 out of 255.
• Base friendship (Gen 8 onward): 50.
• Growth rate: Slow (1,250,000 experience points to reach level 100).
• Defeating it gives 3 HP effort values.
• Base experience yield: 265.

Pokédex entries

It treats Tatsugiri like its boss and follows it loyally. Though powerful, Dondozo is apparently not very smart. (Violet)

This Pokémon is a glutton, but it's bad at getting food. It teams up with a Tatsugiri to catch prey. (Scarlet)

Names around the world

Trivia

• Tallest Pokémon in Gen 9: 12 m.
• Tallest Water type in Gen 9: 12 m.
• Slowest Water type in Gen 9: 35 Speed.
• Highest HP among Water types in Gen 9: 150.
• Highest Defense among Water types in Gen 9: 115.
• Taller than 100% of all Pokémon (12 m).
• Heavier than 93% of all Pokémon (220 kg).
• Base stat total 530, ranked #163 of 1,025.
• Its best stat is HP, ranked #12 of 1,025.
• One of 154 Water-type Pokémon (counting dual types).
• One of 170 blue Pokémon.
• Number 72 of 120 Pokémon introduced in Generation 9 (Paldea).
• Can learn 46 different moves in Scarlet / Violet.
• Catch rate 25: about 3.3% per Poké Ball at full health.
• Appears in 2 distinct Pokédex entries.

Sources and fact-checking

• Stats, types, abilities, moves, evolutions, forms and Pokédex entries: PokéAPI open game data.
• Lore: written by pokee.si in our own words, researched from Bulbapedia: Dondozo (Pokémon), Serebii: Dondozo (Scarlet/Violet Pokédex).
• Pronunciation (don-DOH-zoh): no English source says it out loud, so it is our best guess from the parts of the name.

Last checked: 20 October 2026. Every sentence of the lore was checked against Bulbapedia, Serebii and the game data.

Explore

Water-type Pokémon · Paldea region guide · Unaware ability · Oblivious ability · Water Veil ability · Compare Dondozo · Full Pokédex · Type chart · All moves

Browse similar Pokémon

Gen 9 Water-type Pokémon · Gen 9 Pokémon list · Blue Pokémon list · Water 2 egg group · Pokémon that start with D · Fish Pokémon

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