Animals in Spanish
The first animals in Spanish are el perro (dog), el gato (cat), el pájaro (bird), el pez (fish), la vaca (cow), el caballo (horse), el cerdo (pig) and el pato (duck). A Spanish dog says guau guau, and a ladybug is la mariquita.
Below you’ll find sixteen animals with pronunciation, the farm animals, the sounds animals make in Spanish, a few animals of Latin America, a guessing game, and a free printable chart.
Animals in Spanish list, with pronunciation
| Spanish | Say it | English |
|---|---|---|
| el perro | el PE-rro | dog |
| el gato | el GA-to | cat |
| el pájaro | el PA-ha-ro | bird |
| el pez | el PES | fish |
| la vaca | la BA-ka | cow |
| el caballo | el ka-BA-yo | horse |
| el cerdo | el SER-do | pig |
| la oveja | la o-BE-ha | sheep |
| la gallina | la ga-YEE-na | hen |
| el pato | el PA-to | duck |
| el conejo | el ko-NE-ho | rabbit |
| el ratón | el ra-TON | mouse |
| la tortuga | la tor-TOO-ga | turtle |
| la rana | la RA-na | frog |
| la mariposa | la ma-ree-PO-sa | butterfly |
| la mariquita | la ma-ree-KEE-ta | ladybug |
Start with the animals your child already loves. If there’s a dog in the house, el perrocomes first. If the favorite book is about ducks, it’s el pato. Sixteen is the chart, not the goal for this week.
Farm animals in Spanish
The farm is la granja, and these are the animals on it. Toy farm sets and farm picture books are the perfect place to use them, because every animal is right there to point at.
la vaca
cow
el caballo
horse
el cerdo
pig
la oveja
sheep
la gallina
hen
el gallo
rooster
el pato
duck
el conejo
rabbit
Sounds of animals in Spanish
Animals make different sounds in every language, and kids think this is the funniest thing in the world. Use it. Ask ¿Cómo hace el perro? (what does the dog say?) and wait for ¡guau guau!
| Animal | In Spanish it says | In English |
|---|---|---|
| el perro | guau guau | woof woof |
| el gato | miau | meow |
| la vaca | muu | moo |
| el pájaro | pío pío | tweet tweet |
| el pato | cuac cuac | quack quack |
| el cerdo | oinc oinc | oink oink |
| el gallo | quiquiriquí | cock-a-doodle-doo |
| la rana | croac croac | ribbit |
El cerdo
A pig is el cerdo, and it says oinc oinc. Children love that pigs speak differently in Spanish. And a hummingbird is el colibrí, a word that is fun to say fast.
La mariquita
The ladybug is la mariquita, four quick syllables that children love saying. Let a real one walk across a hand and name it out loud.
Animals of Latin America
El carpincho (capybara), el ñandú (rhea, a big running bird), el hornero (ovenbird, which builds a mud nest shaped like an oven), el yaguareté (jaguar) and el cóndor.
Saying the animal names: ll, j and v
The ll sounds like y
The ll sounds like the y in yes: caballo is ka-BA-yo and gallina is ga-YEE-na.
The j is a breathy h
Conejo (ko-NE-ho), oveja (o-BE-ha) and pájaro (PA-ha-ro) all have it: a soft h from the back of the throat.
The v sounds like b
Spanish says v and b the same way, so vaca is BA-ka. The rr in perro is rolled; a growl is a fine start.
Where the animals live in your day
Animals are the vocabulary children volunteer to learn. You don’t have to bring them into the day; they’re already there.
On a walk
Every dog you pass is un perro, every bird on a wire is un pájaro. ¡Mira, un perro! (Look, a dog!)
The toy box
Plastic animals and farm sets are a ready-made lesson. Name each one as it comes out and make its Spanish sound.
Picture books
Read the English book as usual, but name the animals in Spanish: ¿Dónde está el pato?(Where’s the duck?)
How to use this with your child: ¿Qué animal soy?
You don’t need to speak Spanish to play. Make an animal sound from the table above, ask ¿Qué animal soy? (keh a-nee-MAL soy, what animal am I?), and let your child guess in Spanish. Then swap: your child makes the sound and you guess. Getting it wrong on purpose is part of the fun.
—¡Guau guau! ¿Qué animal soy?
—¡Eres un perro!
(“Woof woof! What animal am I? You’re a dog!”) Eres means you are. Once sounds are easy, act the animal out with no sound at all: hop like el conejo, flap like el pato.
- 1
Read the chart aloud once, together. Mistakes are fine; your child mostly needs to hear you try.
- 2
Start with five animals and their sounds. Perro, gato, vaca, pato, cerdo.
- 3
Play ¿Qué animal soy? in the car or the bath. Five minutes, then stop while it’s fun.
- 4
Name real animals out loud. ¡Mira el pájaro! A real bird beats any picture.
Animal phrases in Spanish and English
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| ¿Qué animal soy? ¡Eres un perro! | What animal am I? You're a dog! |
| ¿Cómo hace la vaca? ¡Muu! | What does the cow say? Moo! |
| ¡Mira el pájaro! | Look at the bird! |
| Tengo un perro. Se llama Max. | I have a dog. His name is Max. |
| ¿Dónde está el gato? | Where is the cat? |
Get the free printable animals chart
One page: all sixteen animals with pronunciation and English, a strip of animal sounds, a note on animals of Latin America and the ¿Qué animal soy? game. Print it and keep it by the toy box.
Download the Chart (Free PDF)Questions parents ask
What are the names of animals in Spanish?
The animals kids name first in Spanish are el perro (dog), el gato (cat), el pájaro (bird), el pez (fish), la vaca (cow), el caballo (horse), el cerdo (pig), la oveja (sheep), el pato (duck), el conejo (rabbit), la rana (frog) and la mariposa (butterfly). Learn each one with its el or la.
What sound does a dog make in Spanish?
A dog says guau guau (GWOW gwow) in Spanish. A cat says miau, a cow says muu, a duck says cuac cuac, a pig says oinc oinc, a bird says pío pío and a rooster says quiquiriquí (kee-kee-ree-KEE). Children find it hilarious that animals speak differently in each language, which makes sounds a great first game.
What are farm animals called in Spanish?
Farm animals are los animales de la granja: la vaca (cow), el caballo (horse), el cerdo (pig), la oveja (sheep), la gallina (hen), el gallo (rooster), el pato (duck) and el conejo (rabbit).
How do you say animals in Spanish?
Animal is el animal and animals is los animales (lohs a-nee-MA-les). Say every animal with its little word in front, el or la, because Spanish nouns come with one: el perro, la vaca. Your child will absorb which is which by hearing it, so there is no need to explain masculine and feminine yet.
Where the animals show up next
Two of our printable stories have animals in them. In Manuel tiene un perro, Manuel’s dog is Max: El perro se llama Max. And in Hay there’s a bird in the tree: Hay un pájaro en el árbol.
Chart Nº 8: Body Parts
Cabeza to pies, with a labeled diagram and the Tócate la nariz game.
Chart Nº 6: Family Members
Mamá, papá, abuela, and the ¿Quién es? photo game.
Chart Nº 10: Emotions
Feliz, triste, enojado, and how to ask ¿Cómo te sientes? at bedtime.
Chart Nº 9: The Alphabet
All 27 letters, from a for abuela to ñ for ñandú.
All free printables
Every chart, plus story readers you can print at home.
Get the Free Starter Story Pack
A short printable Manuel y Lola story with a parent guide in English.
If your child wants something to do on paper, the printable Spanish flashcards, word search puzzles and beginner worksheets cover the earlier units. A bigger Foundations Pack is on the way, but it isn’t for sale yet.
Sources
- Stephen Krashen: Principles and Practice in Second Language Acquisition (1982), the influential input hypothesis: language is acquired by understanding messages, like a name heard while pointing at the real animal