53 animal riddles with answers

You take me for a walk, but I'm the one who decides where we stop. What am I?

Hint: Picture a furry pet on a leash that sniffs every tree and lamppost.

Put an S in front of my name, and I become a word that means "go away!" What am I?

Hint: Imagine shooing an animal off the table, and the short word people shout.

Which word for an animal you keep at home is hiding in the word CARPET?

Hint: Split the word into two smaller words you already know.

People count me when they can't fall asleep, but I've never jumped a fence for them. What am I?

Hint: Picture a bedtime trick where fluffy farm animals hop over a fence one by one.

A baby goat and a young person share my name. What am I?

Hint: The word is short, three letters, and grown-ups call children this all the time.

I'm a baby cow, and I'm also the back of your leg, below the knee. What am I?

Hint: Ask a coach what the muscle at the back of your lower leg is called.

Rearrange the letters of PARROT to get a word for a bird that hunts, like a hawk or an owl.

Hint: Dinosaur fans know this word; try moving the R to the front.

I'm a mother sheep, and I sound exactly like the word for the person reading this. What am I?

Hint: Say the word for the person reading, then spell it a farm way.

I'm a small pet that squeaks, and I'm also the thing you click beside a computer. What am I?

Hint: Look beside a computer keyboard; the clicking gadget shares a pet's name.

I'm a fish with whiskers, and I'm named after a pet that purrs. What am I?

Hint: Its name joins two words, and the first one says meow.

Which farm animal is hiding in the word COWARD?

Hint: Look at the first three letters only.

Which farm animal is hiding in the name of a bird you see in the city, the PIGEON?

Hint: Cover the last three letters with your finger and read what is left.

Which bird is hiding in the words WHEN and THEN?

Hint: Cover the first letter of each word and read what remains.

I have a pocket, but no pants, and I get around by hopping. What am I?

Hint: This hopper lives in Australia and carries its baby in a pouch.

People call me the king of the jungle, but I don't live in the jungle. What am I?

Hint: The big wild animal with a shaggy mane really lives on grassy plains.

Which small insect is hiding inside the name of the biggest animal on land?

Hint: Name the biggest land animal, then look at its last three letters.

I take off my whole skin and leave it on the ground, then slide away in a brand-new one. What am I?

Hint: It has no legs at all, moves in an S shape and often hisses.

I'm a huge animal with antlers, and I sound like a fluffy chocolate dessert. What am I?

Hint: Say the dessert's name aloud and picture a big animal from the cold north woods.

I'm an animal in the woods, and I sound like the first word of a letter. What am I?

Hint: Think how a card to Grandma begins and listen to that first word.

Take the B off BEAR, and you get something you hear with. What is it?

Hint: Cover the B with your finger and see what is left.

I'm a wild animal, and when you eat very fast, people say you do me to your food. What am I?

Hint: Picture a gray fairy tale animal that howls at the moon.

I'm a small animal that digs tunnels, and I'm also a little dark spot on your skin. What am I?

Hint: This digger lives underground and leaves little hills of dirt in lawns.

I live in Africa, and I sound like the opposite of old. What am I?

Hint: This African grazer has a silent first letter, like the word gnome.

Every night I call "who, who," but I never wait for an answer. What am I?

Hint: This bird stays awake at night and hoots from the trees.

I knock on wood all day, but I never want to come in. What am I?

Hint: Listen for tapping on a tree trunk; that bird is hunting for bugs.

I'm a bird, and I'm also what you do when you gulp down your food. What am I?

Hint: Remember what your throat does right after you finish chewing.

I'm a tall bird that wades in water, and I'm also a tall machine that lifts heavy loads at a building site. What am I?

Hint: Picture the tall machine with a hook at a building site and name it.

I'm a bird that paddles on ponds, and I'm also what you do when a ball flies at your head. What am I?

Hint: It quacks, and its name is also a quick way to dodge.

I'm a bird that flies underwater but never in the sky. What am I?

Hint: Picture a black-and-white bird sliding on the ice near the South Pole.

People call me bald, but my head is covered in white feathers. What am I?

Hint: It is the national bird of the United States.

I'm a black bird, and I'm also what a rooster does at sunrise. What am I?

Hint: Picture the straw man in a cornfield and the black bird he scares.

I'm called a jelly and a fish, but I'm neither one. What am I?

Hint: Picture a see-through blob at the beach that can sting your leg.

I'm a horse that nobody can ride, and in my family the dads carry the babies. What am I?

Hint: This tiny fish swims upright and has a head like a pony.

I'm a flat fish, and I'm also the bottom of your shoe. What am I?

Hint: Turn your shoe over and name the part that touches the ground.

I'm a sea animal with flippers, and I'm also what you do to close an envelope. What am I?

Hint: Picture a zoo animal that claps its flippers and barks for fish.

I live in a shell in the sea, and I sound like what grows when you lift heavy things. What am I?

Hint: Flex your arm, name the bump, then find a shellfish that sounds the same.

When your voice goes croaky, people say you have one of me stuck in your throat. What am I?

Hint: Picture the pond animal that says ribbit and croaks all night long.

Take two letters off the front of SHARK, and you get the boat Noah built. What is it?

Hint: Cross out the S and the H and read what is left.

I have a light on my tail, but I've never needed batteries. What am I?

Hint: Look for tiny blinking lights in the yard on a summer night.

My name says "lady," but about half of us are boys. What am I?

Hint: Picture a little red beetle with black spots landing on your hand.

My name says I'm a dragon, but I can't breathe fire, and I'm small enough to land on your finger. What am I?

Hint: Look near a pond for a long bug with four see-through wings.

My first half goes on toast. My second half buzzes around your picnic. Together I have colorful wings. What am I?

Hint: Name what you spread on toast, then name a buzzing picnic pest.

Which insect is hiding in the word MOTHER?

Hint: Look at the first four letters and picture a night bug near a lamp.

I'm a small crawling creature, and I'm also what your little brother does when he won't leave you alone. What am I?

Hint: Your brother keeps poking you, so name what he is doing in one short word.

I'm a tiny jumping pest, and I sound like a word that means to run away. What am I?

Hint: A dog scratches when this tiny pest bites, and its name sounds like escaping.

I'm a black-and-white animal, and I'm also a word for pestering someone until they give in. What am I?

Hint: Look for a striped-faced digger, and a word for nagging.

I'm a fish, and I'm also a word for complaining about small things. What am I?

Hint: It is a big pond fish, and its name is the start of the word carpet.

I'm a big furry animal, and I'm also a word that means to put up with something. What am I?

Hint: Think of words for standing something you dislike, then of big woodland animals.

I'm a sweater with a high, folded collar, and I'm named after an animal that pulls its head into its shell. What am I?

Hint: The collar hugs one body part; the animal hides that same part in its shell.

Take the first letter off GOAT, and you get a grain used to make porridge. What is it?

Hint: Cover the G and read the three letters left over.

Which animal is hiding in the word PIRATE?

Hint: Skip the first two letters and the last one, then read the middle.

Which animal is hiding in both GRAPE and PAPER?

Hint: Find three letters in a row that both words share.

Which animal is hiding in both FEEL and PEEL?

Hint: Look for the three letters that both words end with.