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I don't see any reason why not.
If one player heals another player, that healed player has to wait until their turn comes up in order to move - but that is because they use their own actions to do it. But that healed player should be able to take their turn and be able to move away before the enemy that dropped them gets their turn. That is why the initiative order changes when a player character drops.
An animal companion doesn't have that benefit. So if the animal companion had to wait until your next turn in order to move, that would be quite a bit worse, because that enemy standing over them would certainly get their turn in initiative before the animal companion could do anything.
Well, minions can't act when it's not your turn (as they are essentially an extension of your turn), so there is no other time for it to act, technically speaking. It's also not specified when it does or does not get its actions, but since you can command it after you heal it, which is generally when a minion gains its actions, it would be able to have its actions after it regains consciousness. (Of course, commanding a dying minion does nothing if it's unconscious or otherwise unable to act.)
So if you perform a 2 Action Heal Companion, you can follow up with a 1 Action Command for it to Stand and then Stride away.
Worst case scenario, you can refer to the "Obvious Harm/Defend Self" clause of Minions, meaning in certain cases they will move out of the area regardless of your command (meaning you'd probably have to command them to stay in such an area otherwise).
Official we can't necessarily give you. The game devs are busy.
However, I do remember some recent errata regarding minion actions...
Pages 301 and 634 (Clarification): Can a minion be quickened or slowed?
Yes. This can be a bit unclear because those conditions apply “at the start of your turn” and a minion can’t typically act until you use an action. Apply these conditions and any other effects that alter a minion’s number of actions when the minion gains its actions, using 2 actions and 0 reactions as the minion’s starting number. Though a minion can’t normally act when it’s not your turn, abilities that specifically grant a minion a reaction provide an exception to this (such as the Ferocious Beasts orc ancestry feat, Advanced Players Guide page 19).
So not specifically talking about the minion having the dying condition at the start of your turn, but it does give some weight to the idea that the minion is actually gaining actions when you command it rather than at the start of your turn.
Thanks right that's my point, the GM is arguing that since in the dying state rules companion ate listed and says that you don't gain actions starting your turn in dying. I argue AC don't have turns, I give them actions. He wants some verified ruling
IMO, it's pretty simple: NO companion starts out with actions. Even companions that can act on their own state "During an encounter, even if you don't use the Command an Animal action, your animal companion can still use 1 action on your turn to either Stride or Strike" which means you have to make a choice on your turn before it gets it's actions which is after the start of the turn.
That makes no sense because then that means a dying companion can't Stand Up to Stride away, it's forced to Strike from the ground if not commanded, which is silly when you consider the "Obvious Harm/Self Defense" clause.
That makes no sense because then that means a dying companion can't Stand Up to Stride away, it's forced to Strike from the ground if not commanded, which is silly when you consider the "Obvious Harm/Self Defense" clause.
I guess the player better use their Command then to avoid something that makes no sense: the one action without command is quite clear on what is allowed "During an encounter" and pretty much anything you have it do [or not do] then involves potential harm. Tossing it aside for the the "Obvious Harm/Self Defense" clause would mean you would never have to abide by the actual rule which makes even less sense.
It states "If given no commands, minions use no actions except to defend themselves or to escape obvious harm": IMO, this means defend themselves [strike] or to escape obvious harm [stride] as this matches what they are allowed to do independently. Personally I'd have no issue with them being able to use an appropriate move action instead of just stride [say leap, stand, crawl, ect] but that's not what it says.
A player having to command their companion to get away from something that just nearly killed them seems far more silly than it naturally deciding to do that when not commanded; it's an animal that fights to survive, not a zombie that goes until it dies. It will still definitely value self-preservation, and the GM (may) choose(s) its actions for it when not commanded. Just as well, the rules don't regard "potential harm," they regard "obvious harm." A creature that has downed you once before would constitute as "obvious harm" to me, because the creature has demonstrated to be both extremely hostile and fatal to the companion. It also wouldn't help if the companion was still on death's door.
A fair conclusion, but the GM ultimately decides if the animal will stay to fight or flee when not commanded, and that can largely depend on the animal's condition/situation. It also doesn't mean that the animal will play stupid and Strike while Prone when other NPC animals don't usually do that. I just think the general rules don't cover these situations appropriately, and need either a GM's touch or a full-on revision to account for such situations.
Just as well, if it's not given any commands and acts on its own in such situations, how many actions does it get?
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A player having to command their companion to get away from something that just nearly killed them seems far more silly than it naturally deciding to do that when not commanded;
Narratively that makes sense.
But by game mechanics that isn't how it works.
Companions acting on their own is entirely within the purview of GM discretion anyways.
Is there a way I can get a official ruling or errata on this issue?
No. Your only hope is that they tackle the question in one of the 'errata' but when or if that ever happens isn't something you'll know ahead of time. So it could happen but it's not something you can just ask for and expect an answer.