Practical Pets
by billeyzambie
Practical Pets adds pets with equipment, roles and everyday uses, so tamed animals contribute to survival instead of sitting idle.
What it does
Pets gain a level-up mechanic and can wear special equipment. Several additions give pets a job: ducks take armor and a rubber ducky hat, rats can cook ratatouille, and pigeons can send items to other players. A pet's back can hold an end rod setup that makes it shoot and deal weakness, and a bravery effect lets pets defend their owner in situations where they normally would not.
The mod is a Java port of the Bedrock add-on Billey's Mobs, which its author describes as the oldest ongoing add-on of that kind. A Founder's Pet Hat is given to the first five pets tamed before the mod spreads, and it speeds pet leveling. Players start with a guide book crafted from two strings and two feathers. Geckolib is required, and the mod is open source under the GNU Lesser General Public License v3.0 only. Files for Forge and NeoForge target 1.20.1 only and are published for client and server.
Key features
Pet equipment
Duck armor, bowties, a rubber ducky hat and other items can be put on pets and taken off again with shears.
Useful pet roles
Rats cook ratatouille, pigeons deliver items to other players, and a pet can carry a container like a bundle.
Founder's Pet Hat
The hat is given to the first five pets tamed before the mod spreads and speeds up pet leveling.
Pet bravery
A bravery effect lets pets defend their owner even in situations where they normally would not.
Pet names on death
Dead pets show their name, species and level, and the bowtie drops nothing useful, so the marker is purely cosmetic.
Gallery
Compatibility
Latest build for each game version and loader.
Only full game releases are shown. This mod publishes no snapshot builds.
Use cases
Who it’s for: Players who keep pets in survival and want them to do something, and server owners who run Forge or NeoForge 1.20.1 and want pets with work and equipment.
How it compares
Just Pets is a Forge mod for 1.20.1 – 1.20.6, under the MIT License and not open source. Ducky targets NeoForge 1.20.4 only and is not open source. Crocoducks again covers Forge and NeoForge for 1.20.1 – 1.21.1 under the MIT License and is open source, while Practical Pets is open source under the GNU Lesser General Public License v3.0 only.
| Mod | Loaders | Game versions | Environment | Updated |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Practical Pets | Forge and NeoForge | 1.20.1 | Client and server | 2026-03-26 |
| Just Pets | Forge | 1.20.1 – 1.20.6 | Client and server | 2026-07-12 |
| Ducky | NeoForge | 1.20.4 | Client and server | 2024-03-29 |
| Crocoducks again | Forge and NeoForge | 1.20.1 – 1.21.1 | Client and server | 2025-07-26 |
Questions
Which loaders does Practical Pets support?
Does Practical Pets need Geckolib?
Does the server need the mod?
How do players get the Founder's Pet Hat?
In the catalog
Practical Pets is one of 11,058 Mobs mods on ModsFinder, and one of 6,527 Mobs mods for Forge. 34,764 mods support Minecraft 1.20.1.
Similar mods
What the author says
This mod has no dependencies. It required Geckolib in the very first version but not anymore. Adds unique useful pets to your game. Focused on actually contributing to survival gameplay instead of having the pets constantly sit in a corner.
Official listing
- Modrinth page
- modrinth.com/mod/practical-pets
- Owner
- billeyzambie
- Published
- 2025-03-02
- Updated on Modrinth
- 2026-03-26
- Facts verified
- 2026-10-15