Oh! By the way, Ursa, I had a great idea for you for your dog/unicorn idea. In the Game of Thrones books there are what's known as Skinchangers, people who can enter the minds/bodies of animals and control them. Those who enter the skin of dogs and wolves are known as Wargs. Now the person will need a certain bond with the animal to enter it and may, if not strong enough, lose themselves to the beast side and become the animal itself. It's a very interesting concept, here's the link that will tell you more :) 

[url=http://awoiaf.westeros.org/index.php/Skinchanger]Wargs & Skinchangers[/url]