Use of pluperfect instead of imperfect

Question

Hi

Elles auraient eu un chien si elles avaient pu
They would have had a dog if they could have.

If I'm not mistaken:

auraient eu -> Conditional past "would have"
avaient pu -> Pluperfect "had been able to"

1. What happens to the rule about "Si" + imperfect in this case? Does it only apply to Imperfect + Conditional present?
2. Shouldn't "avaient pu" be something like "auraient eu"?

I can see why you could use the pluperfect for "They would have had a dog if they had been able to". But "... could have" seems to call for the conditional past (although I agree that the meaning is the same).

What am I missing here?

Thanks

Céline Pickard · Accepted Answer

Bonjour Patrick,
Take a look at the link below (a similar question), the answer there should help you:
Other types of "Si" clauses
I hope this is helpful.
Bonne journée !

Patrick Kirk · Answer

Hi Celine, thanks for the quick response. Very clear now.Regards