In Minecraft you can find all kinds of animals and bring them home. Once you do, you can also breed them to expand your farm. This mechanic has received many updates over the years. While you used to need Wheat for almost everything, breeding is now much more diverse. You need the right food or item for each animal to breed them. And with the first drop for 2026 on the horizon and a visual overhaul of baby mobs, it’s the perfect time to look at every animal and how to breed it. You’ll also need all animals to unlock an advancement.
Breeding farm animals in Minecraft: Farm resources efficiently
A farm isn’t complete without animals. Be sure to capture these species and use them for their resources. You can, of course, breed them so you only need to find two of each at the start. These animals are essential for any playthrough.
- Cows: Breed with Wheat. Needed for Leather, Raw Beef/Steak (cooked), and Milk.
- Goats: Also breedable with Wheat. Provide Milk and can occasionally drop Goat Horns when they ram certain blocks.
- Sheep: Eat Wheat. Besides Mutton, they’re crucial for Wool. Wool color is mixed or inherited from a parent. For example, red and yellow can produce orange.
- Pigs: Breed with Carrots, Potatoes, or Beetroots. They drop Porkchops.
- Chickens: Use any kind of Seeds. Important for Feathers and Chicken.
- Bees: Breed with Flowers and produce Honey and Honeycombs.
Taming and breeding pets in Minecraft: Cats, wolves, axolotls
Pets make the game more fun and reliably accompany you. Many players love cats or wolves, but rabbits and axolotls are popular too.
- Wolves: First tame with Bones, then breed with raw or cooked meat. Rotten Flesh also works. They appear in many variants, and some traits can pass to pups.
- Cats: Tame with Raw Salmon or Raw Cod, then breed with raw fish as well. Cats can bring you gifts, and kittens randomly inherit a parent’s color.
- Rabbits: Not tamable, but they’ll trust you when you hold Dandelions or Carrots. Breed with Carrots, Dandelions, or Golden Carrots. Drops: Rabbit’s Foot, Rabbit Hide, and Raw Rabbit.
- Axolotls: Live in lush caves. Breed with a Bucket of Tropical Fish. There’s a small chance (0.083%) for a very rare blue axolotl; otherwise the color of a parent is inherited.
Mounts in Minecraft: Tame and breed horses, donkeys, camels
Mounts are perfect for getting around quickly. From horses to camels, there’s plenty of choice. Some can also be crossbred, for example horse and donkey to make a mule.
- Horses: Tame by repeatedly mounting. Breed only with Golden Carrots or Golden Apples. Selectively breed for high jump strength and speed.
- Donkeys: Tame like horses; breed with Golden Carrots or Golden Apples. Donkeys can carry a Chest for extra inventory space.
- Llamas: Tame, then breed with a Hay Bale. Works for the Wandering Trader’s llamas too. They also have inventory slots.
- Striders: Found in the Nether. Carry you across lava lakes. Breed with Warped Fungus.
- Nautilus: There’s no rideable nautilus in vanilla. If you play with mods, check the mod description. Some modpacks use pufferfish or other items for breeding.
- Camels: You don’t need to tame them; simply breed with Cactus.
More Minecraft animals to breed: Ocelot, turtle, panda, frog, fox, hoglin, sniffer, armadillo
You’ll discover many more animals while exploring. Some can’t be tamed but are still important for specific farms and resources.
- Ocelot: Since they were split from cats, ocelots are not breedable. You can only gain their trust with raw fish. They’re less useful than cats.
- Turtle: Breed with Seagrass. They lay eggs that hatch over time. Baby turtles drop Scutes, which craft the Turtle Shell helmet. Learn more in the farm guide: (Minecraft: Build an Automatic Turtle Farm – Scutes for Helmets and Potions) .
- Pandas: Need Bamboo as food and placed in the area. They have different genes that pass to offspring.
- Frogs: Breed with Slimeballs. They produce tadpoles, which grow into different frog colors depending on the biome.
- Foxes: Eat Sweet Berries or Glow Berries. The baby fox will trust the player.
- Hoglin: Breedable in the Nether with Crimson Fungus. Be careful—they’re hostile.
- Sniffer: Digs up unique plant seeds. Breed with Torchflower Seeds. It lays eggs that hatch in about 20 minutes.
- Armadillo: Found in savannas and deserts. Eat Spider Eyes. Drop Armadillo Scutes for Wolf Armor.
Conclusion on Minecraft breeding: Resources, companions, and rare variants
Animal breeding is a key part of Minecraft. It lets you obtain renewable resources and grow your herd. Whether livestock, travel companions, or rare creatures in other dimensions, the fauna is diverse—and so are the breeding methods. Some animals have special mechanics, like frogs with tadpoles or the very rare blue axolotl.
To find and breed every animal more easily, rent one of our Minecraft servers and hunt for your favorite creatures. That way you’ll be ready for the upcoming drop in early 2026, which brings updated versions of baby animals.
