Pokemon GO Valentine’s Day Event Guide (February 2026) Spawns, Shiny & Raids
Love is officially in the air and this , Pokemon GO is making sure every Trainer feels it. The Pokemon…
The Pokemon GO Precious Pals event is here, bringing buddy-focused bonuses, the debut of Shiny Fidough, and a Team Rocket takeover that’ll keep you busy all week! I’ve been diving deep into this event since it launched, and trust me, there’s a lot more to it than meets the eye. Whether you’re chasing that elusive shiny or trying to maximize your buddy hearts, this guide has everything you need to make the most of the Precious Pals celebration.
| Event Details | Information |
|---|---|
| Event Name | Precious Pals |
| Start Date | Tuesday, January 20, 2026 at 10:00 AM local time |
| End Date | Sunday, January 25, 2026 at 8:00 PM local time |
| Duration | 5 days |
| Featured Shiny Debut | Shiny Fidough and Shiny Dachsbun |
| Ticket Price | $4.99 USD (Premium Timed Research) |
| Special Sub-Event | Precious Pals: Taken Over (Team GO Rocket) |
The Precious Pals event is Pokemon GO’s latest weekly celebration, replacing the High Zaptitude event. This buddy-themed event centers around strengthening your bond with your companion Pokemon while introducing exciting new shiny Pokemon to the game. For the first time ever, trainers can encounter Shiny Fidough and evolve it into the adorable Shiny Dachsbun.
What makes this event particularly special is the combination of buddy bonuses, limited-time evolution requirements, and a mid-event Team GO Rocket takeover that adds an extra layer of excitement. The event runs concurrently with the Season of Precious Paths, offering seasonal bonuses on top of event-specific rewards.
The Precious Pals event comes packed with bonuses designed to enhance your buddy Pokemon experience. Here’s everything you can take advantage of during the event:
Buddy-Related Bonuses:
Shiny Encounter Bonuses:
Evolution Bonuses: The event features special limited-time evolution requirements that make it easier to obtain certain Pokemon. These requirements will revert to normal when the event ends on Sunday, January 25, 2026 at 8:00 PM local time.
During the Precious Pals event, three Pokemon have temporarily reduced evolution requirements:
Pro Tip: If you’ve been putting off these evolutions, now is absolutely the time to complete them. Once the event ends, requirements return to normal, and you’ll be kicking yourself for missing this opportunity. I recommend prioritizing Sylveon if you only have time for one, as earning 70 hearts normally takes weeks of dedicated play.
Don’t forget these seasonal bonuses that stack with event bonuses:
The headliner of this event is the global debut of Shiny Fidough and its evolution, Shiny Dachsbun. This marks the first time these shiny variants have been available in Pokemon GO.
Regular Fidough features a cream-colored body with brown ears. Shiny Fidough transforms this color palette, giving it a distinct appearance that stands out from the regular version.
How to Encounter Shiny Fidough:
Evolution Requirements:
Collector’s Strategy: I strongly recommend trying to catch at least two Shiny Fidough if you can. Keep one as Fidough for your shiny collection, and evolve the second into Shiny Dachsbun. This way, you’ll have both evolutionary stages represented in your Pokedex. While Fidough isn’t a meta-relevant Pokemon for battles, shiny collectors will want both forms.
Let’s be honest – Dachsbun isn’t going to revolutionize your battle teams. As a Fairy-type Pokemon, it faces steep competition from powerhouses like Togekiss, Gardevoir, and Sylveon. Dachsbun’s stats don’t quite measure up for competitive play in either PvP or PvE content.
However, that doesn’t diminish the value of adding it to your collection! Shiny Fidough and Dachsbun are adorable additions, and completing the shiny family is rewarding in its own right. Plus, Pokemon GO’s meta shifts with new moves and rebalances, so you never know when Dachsbun might get its moment to shine.
During the Precious Pals event, specific Pokemon will appear more frequently in the wild. Here’s the complete spawn pool:
| Pokemon | Type(s) | Can Be Shiny? |
|---|---|---|
| Goldeen | Water | ✓ Yes |
| Magikarp | Water | ✓ Yes |
| Eevee | Normal | ✓ Yes |
| Swablu | Normal/Flying | ✓ Yes |
| Stufful | Normal/Fighting | ✓ Yes |
| Wimpod | Bug/Water | ✓ Yes |
| Pawmi | Electric | ✓ Yes |
| Fidough | Fairy | ✓ Yes (DEBUT!) |
These Pokemon appear less frequently but are still part of the event spawn pool:
| Pokemon | Type(s) | Can Be Shiny? | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Zorua | Dark | ✓ Yes | Disguises as your Buddy Pokemon |
| Pancham | Fighting | ✓ Yes | Can evolve with reduced requirements |
| Espurr | Psychic | ✓ Yes | Relatively rare spawn |
Spawn Optimization Tips:
During the Precious Pals event, you’ll have an increased chance of receiving 2km eggs from spinning Pokestop discs. These eggs contain a special event-themed hatch pool:
| Pokemon | Type(s) | Can Be Shiny? | Hatch Rarity |
|---|---|---|---|
| Goldeen | Water | ✓ Yes (Boosted) | 1-Egg |
| Togepi | Fairy | ✓ Yes | 1-Egg |
| Happiny | Normal | ✓ Yes | 1-Egg |
| Riolu | Fighting | ✓ Yes | 1-Egg |
| Fidough | Fairy | ✓ Yes (Boosted, DEBUT!) | 1-Egg |
| Larvesta | Bug/Fire | ✓ Yes | 5-Egg |
Egg Hatching Strategy: The event explicitly states increased chances to hatch Shiny Goldeen and Shiny Fidough, making eggs one of your best bets for scoring these shinies. Here’s my recommended approach:
The inclusion of Riolu and Larvesta in 2km eggs is particularly noteworthy – these are typically found in longer-distance eggs, so getting them from 2km eggs is a significant bonus.
Event-themed Field Research tasks are available from Pokestops during the Precious Pals event. Here’s the complete list:
| Task | Reward | Pokemon CP Range | Can Be Shiny? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Earn a Candy exploring with your buddy | Fidough encounter | 389-422 | ✓ Yes |
| Give your buddy 1 treat | 5 Razz Berries | N/A | N/A |
| Give your buddy 1 treat | 5 Nanab Berries | N/A | N/A |
| Give your buddy 1 treat | 5 Pinap Berries | N/A | N/A |
| Take a snapshot of your buddy | Goldeen encounter | 458-493 | ✓ Yes |
| Take a snapshot of your buddy | Eevee encounter | 424-459 | ✓ Yes |
| Take a snapshot of your buddy | Pawmi encounter | 244-272 | ✓ Yes |
Field Research Tips:
Best Tasks to Focus On:
Two Collection Challenges are available during the Precious Pals event. Completing these challenges rewards you with XP, Stardust, and additional Fidough encounters.
Requirements:
Rewards:
Completion Strategy: This is straightforward – catch any Fidough during the event and evolve it using 50 Fidough candies. The evolution immediately completes the challenge. You can catch Fidough from wild spawns, research tasks, or by hatching from 2km eggs.
Requirements:
Rewards:
Completion Strategy: All four Pokemon are spawning commonly during the event, so this challenge should complete naturally as you play. If you’re specifically hunting for these:
Total Challenge Rewards: 10,000 XP + 10,000 Stardust + 2 Fidough encounters (both can be shiny!)
For $4.99 USD (or equivalent in your local currency), you can purchase access to event-exclusive Timed Research. This ticket can also be gifted to friends who have reached Great Friends status or higher with you.
All Tasks (1 Step Total):
Completion Rewards:
Let’s break down the actual value:
What You Get:
My Honest Opinion: The Premium Timed Research is pretty skippable unless you’re a completionist who wants the Heart Pose avatar item. Here’s why:
❌ Cons:
✅ Pros:
My Recommendation: Skip it unless you specifically want the avatar pose or are a completionist. The free content during this event is already substantial, and spending $5 here doesn’t add enough value. Save your money for future events or the Ultra Ticket Box if you want the Premium Battle Pass included.
Available exclusively through the Pokemon GO Web Store for $4.99 USD, the Precious Pals Ultra Ticket Box offers:
Value Breakdown:
Is This a Better Deal? Yes, significantly better than buying the Timed Research alone! If you were planning to purchase the Premium Timed Research anyway, the Ultra Ticket Box is objectively the better choice. You get everything from the research ticket PLUS a Premium Battle Pass and Reward Points for the same $4.99 price.
The Premium Battle Pass alone makes this worthwhile if you do raids regularly. You can use it during the Shadow Raikou Raid Day on January 24th for maximum value.
Starting Friday, January 23 at 12:00 AM through Sunday, January 25, 2026 at 8:00 PM local time, the Precious Pals event gets invaded by Team GO Rocket in the “Precious Pals: Taken Over” sub-event.
| Sub-Event | Start Time | End Time |
|---|---|---|
| Precious Pals: Taken Over | Friday, Jan 23 at 12:00 AM | Sunday, Jan 25 at 8:00 PM |
| Shadow Raikou Raid Day | Saturday, Jan 24 at 2:00 PM | Saturday, Jan 24 at 5:00 PM |
Team GO Rocket Features:
Special Research: A Special Research quest unlocks at the start of Taken Over, rewarding you with a Super Rocket Radar to track down Giovanni. Defeating Giovanni gives you a chance to catch Shadow Incarnate Forme Thundurus – a Legendary Shadow Pokemon!
Important Note: This Special Research can be claimed until the end of Season of Precious Paths on March 3, 2026 at 9:59 AM local time, so you don’t need to rush if you miss the weekend.
Several Pokemon will become available as Shadow Pokemon for the first time:
New Shadow Pokemon from Grunts:
Updated Team GO Rocket Leader Lineups: Team GO Rocket Leaders (Sierra, Cliff, and Arlo) will update their lineups starting Friday, January 23 at 12:00 AM. At least one leader is expected to feature a Shadow Pokemon that hasn’t been available in shiny form yet.
On Saturday, January 24 from 2:00 PM to 5:00 PM local time, Shadow Raikou takes over Five-Star Shadow Raids with special bonuses:
Raid Day Bonuses:
Shadow Raid Schedule:
Raid Day Strategy:
Special Field Research: Event-themed Field Research tasks will be available during Taken Over, rewarding:
Collection Challenge: An event-themed Collection Challenge will task you with catching specific Shadow Pokemon. Completing it rewards:
Standard Raids continue throughout the Precious Pals event with the following lineup:
One-Star Raids:
Three-Star Raids:
Five-Star Raids:
Mega Raids:
Five-Star Shadow Raids:
Three-Star Shadow Raids: (Daily availability)
One-Star Shadow Raids: (Daily availability)
PokéStop Showcases allow you to enter your Pokemon to compete for the “biggest” specimen in special contests. During Precious Pals:
Showcase 1:
Showcase 2:
Showcase Tips:
Max Battles continue their standard rotation during Precious Pals. Here’s what’s available:
One-Star Max Battles: Dynamax Bulbasaur, Charmander, Squirtle, Caterpie, Abra, Gastly, Krabby, Omanyte, Kabuto, Ralts, Spheal, Pidove, Woobat, Drilbur, Trubbish, Inkay, Bounsweet, Grookey, Scorbunny, Sobble, Skwovet, Rookiedee, Wooloo, and Hatenna
Two-Star Max Battles: Dynamax Machop, Eevee, Shuckle, Wailmer, and Darumaka
Three-Star Max Battles: Dynamax Chansey, Sableye, Beldum, Cryogonal, Passimian, Drampa, and Falinks
Max Particle Costs:
If you’ve unlocked tiers in GO Pass or GO Pass Deluxe, additional bonuses are active until Tuesday, February 3, 2026 at 9:00 AM local time:
Tier 1 (Rank 25):
Tier 2 (Rank 50):
Tier 3 (Rank 75):
After grinding through the event myself, here are my top strategies for getting the most out of Precious Pals:
If you have limited time, tackle evolutions in this order:
Before Friday, January 23:
During Saturday’s Raid Day:
Don’t waste resources on:
Do invest in:
From my experience and watching other players, here are pitfalls to dodge:
❌ Mistake 1: Waiting until the last day for evolutions If the servers crash or you forget, you’ll miss the reduced requirements. Start early!
❌ Mistake 2: Ignoring the Team Rocket weekend The Frustration removal window is incredibly rare – don’t skip it
❌ Mistake 3: Not clearing egg slots before the event Get rid of 5km, 7km, 10km, and 12km eggs beforehand to maximize 2km egg collection
❌ Mistake 4: Evolving Shadow Pokemon before removing Frustration Once evolved, you can’t use TMs to remove Frustration until the next Team Rocket event
❌ Mistake 5: Forgetting to take AR+ photos Several tasks require buddy snapshots – super quick to complete
The Precious Pals event runs from Tuesday, January 20, 2026 at 10:00 AM local time through Sunday, January 25, 2026 at 8:00 PM local time. That’s 5 days and 10 hours of event time.
Yes! Shiny Fidough is making its global debut during this event and can be encountered through wild spawns, 2km egg hatches, Field Research task rewards, and Collection Challenge rewards.
Fidough evolves into Dachsbun using 50 Fidough Candy. There are no special items, walking requirements, or other conditions needed.
Yes! If you’ve already walked 15 km with Pawmo before the event, you only need 5 more km during the event to evolve it into Pawmot. The same applies to Eevee hearts and Pancham Dark-type catches.
No – you can only remove Frustration using Charged TMs during the Precious Pals: Taken Over sub-event, which runs from Friday, January 23 at 12:00 AM through Sunday, January 25, 2026 at 8:00 PM local time.
Shadow Pokemon deal 20% more damage but take 20% more damage in return. Shadow Raikou is one of the best Electric-type attackers in the game for raids, making it highly valuable for PvE content. However, it requires significant Stardust and Candy investment to power up and unlock a second Charged Move.
The best counters are strong Ground-types like Shadow Garchomp, Groudon, Landorus (Therian Forme), Excadrill, and Rhyperior. Fighting and Fairy-types like Terrakion and Zacian (Crowned Sword) also work well.
Yes! The Special Research to battle Giovanni and catch Shadow Thundurus can be claimed until the end of Season of Precious Paths on March 3, 2026 at 9:59 AM local time. However, you must claim it during the Taken Over event (Jan 23-25).
Not at all. The tasks involve earning hearts with your buddy, feeding your buddy, and taking a snapshot – all very simple activities that can be completed in a single play session. Most players finish within an hour.
The Collection Challenges will expire when the event ends on Sunday, January 25 at 8:00 PM local time. Any incomplete challenges will be removed from your Special Research menu, and you won’t be able to claim the rewards.
Yes! The event specifically mentions an “increased chance to hatch Shiny Goldeen” from 2km eggs obtained during the event period.
Yes – once a shiny is released in Pokemon GO, it remains available permanently. However, spawn rates for Fidough will drop significantly after the event ends, making it much harder to encounter.
You can’t “save” 2km eggs for the event – eggs are determined when you receive them from Pokestops, not when you hatch them. Instead, try to clear all eggs from your inventory before the event starts, then spin stops during the event to collect event-themed 2km eggs.
Yes! Premium Battle Passes, Remote Raid Passes, and free Daily Raid Passes all work on Shadow Raids. The Shadow Raikou Raid Day specifically provides up to 6 free passes for the 3-hour window.
Shadow Cresselia is decent for Master League PvP but requires heavy investment. If you’re a collector or competitive PvP player, it’s worth getting one. Otherwise, focus your passes on Shadow Raikou during the Raid Day for better value.
Absolutely! The Precious Pals event offers something for every type of Pokemon GO player. Shiny hunters get the debut of Shiny Fidough, completionists can knock out those tedious buddy evolutions with reduced requirements, and competitive players can grab Shadow Raikou during the Raid Day.
What I love most about this event is how accessible it is. You don’t need to spend money to enjoy the vast majority of content – the free version of the event is packed with spawns, bonuses, and challenges. The Premium Timed Research is completely skippable unless you’re a die-hard collector who wants that Heart Pose.
My personal must-do list for this event:
The event only lasts 5 days, so make sure you prioritize what matters most to you. Don’t stress about completing everything – Pokemon GO is meant to be fun, not a second job!
Now get out there and make some precious memories with your buddy Pokemon. Happy hunting, trainers!
