ModsFinder

Respawning Animals

by Fuzs

Respawning Animals changes how passive mobs are kept in a Java Edition world, letting wild animals despawn when far away and repopulate nearby areas over time.

FabricForgeNeoForgeServer-side onlyMozilla Public License 2.0Open source1.18.2 – 26.3

What it does

Animals normally persist forever after world generation. With this mod, wild animals can disappear when no player is near and return to areas around active players, following a Bedrock Edition style spawning pattern. Hunting or clearing animals from a region does not leave it bare for good, because wildlife slowly returns.

Animals tied to players are kept in place. Tamed, bred, named, ridden and otherwise interacted-with animals become permanent, so pets and livestock are not lost. Spawning is adjusted through a handful of world game rules rather than config files, so each world can be tuned separately.

Installation is needed on the server only, and players join without installing it. The mod requires Fabric API on Fabric, Forge Config API Port on Fabric, and Puzzles Lib on Fabric and NeoForge. It is published for Fabric, Forge and NeoForge across 19 release versions, 1.18.2 – 26.3, and is open source under the Mozilla Public License 2.0.

Key features

  1. Bedrock-style animal spawning

    Wild animals follow spawning behavior closer to Bedrock Edition, with passive mobs leaving and returning around players.

  2. Respawning wild animals

    Animals far from every player can despawn and later repopulate nearby areas as players explore.

  3. No permanent depletion

    Hunting or clearing animals from a region does not leave it empty for good, since animals return over time.

  4. Protected player animals

    Tamed, bred, named, ridden and interacted-with animals automatically become permanent in the world.

  5. Game rule configuration

    Spawning is tuned with a handful of toggles stored in each world, so settings can differ between worlds.

Compatibility

Latest build for each game version and loader.

26.x5 of 5 versions with builds
26.326.3.0Not available26.3.0
26.226.2.0Not available26.2.0
26.1.226.1.1Not available26.1.1
26.1.126.1.1Not available26.1.1
26.126.1.1Not available26.1.1
1.21.x8 of 8 versions with builds
1.21.1121.11.0Not available21.11.0
1.21.1021.10.0Not available21.10.0
1.21.921.9.0Not available21.9.0
1.21.8v21.8.1-1.21.8-FabricNot availablev21.8.1-1.21.8-NeoForge
1.21.7v21.7.0-1.21.7-FabricNot availablev21.7.0-1.21.7-NeoForge
1.21.5v21.5.0-1.21.5-FabricNot availablev21.5.0-1.21.5-NeoForge
1.21.4v21.4.0-1.21.4-FabricNot availablev21.4.0-1.21.4-NeoForge
1.21.1v21.1.2-1.21.1-FabricNot availablev21.1.2-1.21.1-NeoForge
1.20.x3 of 3 versions with builds
1.19.x2 of 2 versions with builds
1.18.x1 of 1 version with builds
ReleaseBetaAlphaNot available

Only full game releases are shown. This mod publishes no snapshot builds.

Requirements

Dependencies declared by the latest file for each loader.

Required 3

Puzzles LibWhy is it called Puzzles? That's the puzzle.
Required
Fabric APILightweight and modular API providing common hooks and intercompatibility measures utilized by mods using the Fabric toolchain.
Required
Forge Config API PortNeoForge's & Forge's config systems provided to other modding ecosystems. Designed for a multiloader architecture.
Required

Use cases

Renewable livestock

Farms and animal pens can be refilled naturally, which supports consistent spawning for farming setups.

Pet safety

Tamed animals and animals a player has bred or named are kept, so they are not lost to despawning.

Who it’s for: Server owners who want passive mob spawning to follow Bedrock Edition rules, and players who depend on animal farms, pets or renewable animal populations.

How it compares

Full comparison

Naturalist is a client and server mod under a custom license, published for 1.18.2 – 26.3 on Fabric, Forge and NeoForge, so both sides need it. Explosive Animals! is server-side only and All rights reserved, with files for 1.19.2 – 1.21.1, and it adds explosions rather than spawning changes. Longer Following Time is client and server, All rights reserved, for 1.20.1 – 26.1.2, and changes how long animals follow players.

ModLoadersGame versionsEnvironmentUpdated
Respawning AnimalsFabric, Forge and NeoForge1.18.2 – 26.3Server-side only2026-09-26
NaturalistFabric, Forge and NeoForge1.18.2 – 26.3Client and server2026-09-28
Explosive Animals!Fabric, Forge and NeoForge1.19.2 – 1.21.1Server-side only2026-09-04
Longer Following TimeFabric, Forge and NeoForge1.20.1 – 26.1.2Client and server2026-07-25

Questions

Does Respawning Animals need to be installed on every client?

No. It runs on the server alone, so players need nothing extra to join.

Which dependencies does Respawning Animals require?

Fabric API and Forge Config API Port are required on Fabric, and Puzzles Lib is required on Fabric and NeoForge. All three must be installed next to the mod.

Can spawning be changed per world?

Yes. Spawning is adjusted through world game rules, so each world can use different settings without editing files.

In the catalog

Respawning Animals is one of 11,058 Mobs mods on ModsFinder, and one of 5,189 Mobs mods for Fabric. 8,071 mods support Minecraft 26.3.

Mobs mods11,058Fabric modsMods for 26.38,071

More from Fuzs

All projects
Forge Config API Port1.16 – 26.3Puzzles Lib1.18.2 – 26.3Visual Workbench1.19 – 26.3Cut Through1.18.2 – 26.3Easy Anvils1.18.2 – 26.3Pick Up Notifier1.19 – 26.3

Similar mods

[EMF] Entity Model Features1.18.2 – 26.3L_Ender's Cataclysm1.19.2 – 1.21.5Alex's Mobs1.16.5 – 1.20.1Guard Villagers1.16.5 – 26.3Touhou Little Maid1.16.5 – 1.21.1Creeper Overhaul1.18.2 – 1.21.1

What the author says

Respawnable Animals brings Bedrock Edition style animal spawning to Java Edition. Instead of animals existing forever after world generation, they can naturally disappear when far away and repopulate areas around active players, just like passive mobs do in Bedrock Edition. 🐄 This keeps the world feeling alive and…
Fuzs, on the Modrinth page

Official listing

Owner
Fuzs
Published
2023-05-10
Updated on Modrinth
2026-09-26
Facts verified
2026-10-15

Tags

Game mechanicsMobsAdventureWorld generation
Open on ModrinthCompare