Animals

Counterparts to both wild and domestic animals feature throughout Equestria in various episodes. Most of these animals only have incidental roles or appearances. Some of these animals, much like ponies, are also capable of speech or socializing.

Bat
After being scared in Winter Wrap Up, Twilight Sparkle backs into a den before rushing out again, chased by these flying mammals. In The Ticket Master, a surprised Pinkie Pie squeals about bats on her face. In The Show Stoppers, artificial bats serve as props for the play. In the episode May the Best Pet Win!, a bat with the same design as some of the ones from Winter Wrap Up is one of the contestants in Rainbow Dash's contest to see who will be her new pet. In Luna Eclipsed, Princess Luna's cloak is made of bats.

Bear
In Party of One, Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy mention a bear named Harry as part of an elaborate excuse to avoid coming to Pinkie Pie's after-birthday party for Gummy. In Lesson Zero, a bear appears outside Fluttershy's cottage. She gives it a massage, which Twilight Sparkle mistakes for a fight. The same bear also appears in Too Many Pinkie Pies and on the Season 2 poster. In the interactive Ruckus Reader and Barnes &amp; Noble Nook storybook Things That Go Bump in the Night, a different bear appears in the imagination of Pinkie Pie, who refers to it as a "mean bear". This bear uses the ursa minor design, resized and recolored to fit the appearance of an ordinary bear. In Hot Topic and The Hub's Hot Minute interview with Fluttershy, she responds to the prompt "Best gift you've received" with the answer "A big hug from Harry the bear".

Bee
Bees make several appearances throughout the series, most often associated with a hanging nest. One such nest hangs from the tree that houses the library Twilight Sparkle lives in. Swarms of bees assault Twilight Sparkle in Feeling Pinkie Keen and Winter Wrap Up. They also chase Rainbow Dash in the episode Fall Weather Friends. Granny Smith can be seen interacting with bees twice in Family Appreciation Day. She explains that befriending bees gives their honey the right taste as an ingredient for zap apple jam. The bees also appear in The Cutie Mark Chronicles during Fluttershy's recollection of how she obtained her cutie mark.

Bird
The show depicts a wide variety of birds living in Equestria. Some take after real bird species, while others, like the phoenix, are mythical creatures. They are prominently featured in episodes one, three, and thirteen. In The Ticket Master, Fluttershy specifically named loons, toucans, bitterns, hummingbirds, buzzards, blue jays, red jays, green jays, pink jays, and pink flamingos. Some birds go south for winter and are brought back by Pegasi during Winter Wrap Up. While birds still lay eggs and raise families, it seems they do not build their own nests, as the ponies are seen building nests for them. It's also likely that they do not find their own food, as Fluttershy is frequently seen feeding animals which are supposedly capable of foraging and hunting for themselves. Fluttershy's astonished (nearly horrified) claim that animals in the Everfree Forest "care for themselves" in Bridle Gossip lends credence to this theory that ponies see animals as less than capable of surviving without them. In Owl's Well That Ends Well, Pinkie Pie presents Spike with a quail. A few kinds of birds including a falcon, eagle, and hummingbird are shown in May the Best Pet Win!. In The Return of Harmony Part 1, Sweetie Belle calls Scootaloo a dodo, which is a flightless bird. In Read It and Weep, the book Rainbow Dash reads mentioned macaws crying from the high trees. One of the pawns in "Rainbow Dash's favorite board game" represented a seagull in the same episode.

Chicken
Domesticated chickens are seen for the first time in the episode Fall Weather Friends. Applejack and Rainbow Dash needed to escort a few baby chickens through the mud pile to the other side as one of the tasks of Iron Pony competition. In Applejack's case, they run away because too much mud was splattering on them, whereas Rainbow Dash safely carried them while protecting the chickens from mud with her wings. These farmland birds play a more prominent role in Stare Master. When they refused to go to chicken coop for sleep, Fluttershy "convinced" them to do so with her stare. Later in said episode, Sweetie Belle's loud singing startled the chickens and they started to run away, and both the Cutie Mark Crusaders and Fluttershy tried to contain them, but fruitlessly. In Owl's Well That Ends Well, Spike chases and fights a chicken at Sweet Apple Acres to get one of its feathers for Twilight Sparkle to use as a quill.

Elizabeak
Elizabeak is one of Fluttershy's chickens. She first appears in Stare Master, where she escapes from her pen and ventures into the Everfree Forest after Sweetie Belle sings an overly loud lullaby. Sweetie Belle and friends sneak out of bed and go to find her. She is turned to stone by a cockatrice, and later restored when Fluttershy convinces it to undo what it had done. Her name is a pun on the name "Elizabeth".

Crow
In Family Appreciation Day, it was explained by Granny Smith that a large murder of crows herald the third sign of zap apple jam: the appearance of zap apple flowers. This event was depicted in the series as a large flock of crows circling around the orchard during a short period of strong wind and dark-clouded sky, creating an apple-like shape and the blossoms appeared shortly after.

Duck
Ducks are seen in Griffon the Brush Off as Fluttershy leads them across a road and is then knocked by Gilda. As she starts to insult Fluttershy, the scared ducks run away. They are also seen in The Cutie Mark Chronicles, once again being led across a road by Fluttershy and nearly being hit by Scootaloo on her scooter. In Fluttershy's flashback in said episode, they are seen hiding in clouds after being startled by the sonic rainboom, and Fluttershy calms them shortly after.

Eagle
An eagle appears as a pet candidate for Rainbow Dash in the episode May the Best Pet Win!.

Falcon
A falcon appears as a pet candidate for Rainbow Dash in the episode May the Best Pet Win!.

Flamingo
A flamingo is seen in Fluttershy's imagination in The Ticket Master and in The Best Night Ever, and also as a potential pet for Rainbow Dash in May the Best Pet Win!

Hummingbird
A hummingbird first appears briefly in The Ticket Master in Fluttershy's daydream as one of the bird residents of the royal garden in Canterlot. Hummingway, one of Fluttershy's many pets, appears in A Bird in the Hoof. A hummingbird is also a candidate for Rainbow Dash's pet in the episode May the Best Pet Win!.

Hummingway
Hummingway is one of Fluttershy's animal friends who appears in A Bird in the Hoof, a hummingbird whom she helps when he gets sick. She introduces him to Philomena, trying to cheer her up, and they seem to take to each other quite well. Hummingway likes to sing with Fluttershy. His name is a play on the name "Hemingway", the surname of a famous writer.

Meadowlark
A meadowlark can be seen in the royal garden in The Best Night Ever.

Owl
Owlowiscious, Twilight Sparkle's pet and junior assistant, is an owl. He is introduced in Owl's Well That Ends Well, returns in May the Best Pet Win!, and is featured on a trading card.

In Stare Master, an owl in the Everfree Forest is shown in the foreground. In May the Best Pet Win!, a similar-looking owl is one of the contestants in Rainbow Dash's contest to see who will be her new pet.

Two owls have appeared as toys. The first owl is included with Twilight Sparkle in the first three waves of Playful Ponies, and has artwork that is included as a cardboard cutout in other toy sets' packaging. The second owl is included behind flap 4 in the Advent Calendar.

Toucan
A toucan appears as a pet candidate for Rainbow Dash in the episode May the Best Pet Win!.

Buffalo
Buffalo are first seen in Over a Barrel when Applejack delivers Bloomberg to Appleloosa in order to be planted. However, the buffaloes oppose this since their sacred stampeding grounds had recently been used to plant an apple orchard. Buffaloes are seen briefly in The Return of Harmony Part 2, where they are transformed by Discord into mindless ballerinas.

Butterfly
Normally seen fluttering around setting shots in most episodes, butterflies occasionally are used to cover the transition to a new scene. They take a more important role during a flashback in the episode The Cutie Mark Chronicles in which a swarm of them catches Fluttershy before she hit the ground. A giant monarch butterfly appears as a pet candidate for Rainbow Dash in the episode May the Best Pet Win!. In Too Many Pinkie Pies, Fluttershy uses "Butterfly Therapy" to rejuvenate Pinkie Pie's exhaustion with a swarm of butterflies.

Caterpillar
Green caterpillars are larval forms of butterflies. A single one is seen in Baby Cakes and almost eats an apple on the ground, but Applejack prevents it just in time. She claimed in said episode that she "gotta get all these apples picked before they get swarmed on", as a large group of caterpillars was said to be headed for the farm.

Cat
Cats can sometimes be heard yowling in the background in multiple episodes when objects or ponies crash. Fluttershy holds out a cat in May the Best Pet Win! as a pet suggestion for Rainbow Dash, and a cat of the same design is encountered by Daring Do in Read It and Weep, amongst actual predatory felines. Opalescence, Rarity's pet Persian cat, is featured in several episodes. In comic book issue #1 on page 3, artist Andy Price's six cats Sam, Spooky, Tabitha, Boris, Bela, and Mina appear throughout the lower half of the scene.

Cattle
Cattle are a large domestic species. Many cows are seen living in a barn in Ponyville in the episode Boast Busters, and two males are seen pulling a cart through Ponyville in the episode Hearts and Hooves Day. A cow stampede is featured in Applebuck Season, after which one of the cows speaks with Applejack and apologizes for the stampede, stating that her skittish friend Mooriella started it after being startled by snakes. The white cow with brown splotches and a curly hairdo speaks with a stereotypical Wisconsin accent, referencing the fact that Wisconsin is well known for its dairy production.

The same white and brown cow appears again in A Friend in Deed, with Pinkie Pie addressing her as Daisy Jo, the same name as the G3 Earth pony mare Daisyjo. A white and black cow makes various appearances in One Bad Apple.

Dog
Applejack's pet dog, Winona, is the only actual dog featured in the series. Much like the real-world counterpart of a work dog, she is capable of herding farmland animals, cows in this case, aside Applejack in Applebuck Season. Unlike the Diamond Dogs, regular Equestria dogs are not able to talk and socialize. In Green Isn't Your Color, Fluttershy barks while acting like a dog under the influence of Twilight Sparkle's magic. In Read It and Weep, "Screw Loose" makes hound-like barking and growling sounds while chasing Rainbow Dash alongside hospital staff. Also in that episode, drawings of dogs are among those in the puzzle Daring Do solves.

Donkey
Donkeys are another major species residing in Equestria who are capable of speech and socializing. The first donkeys in the series appear in A Friend in Deed, the first being Matilda, a female donkey residing in Ponyville, and Cranky Doodle Donkey, a male donkey and a newly moved in resident in Ponyville. Cranky Doodle Donkey had been traveling across Equestria searching for his lost love who, in the end, turns out to be Matilda, with whom he reunites thanks to Pinkie Pie. Donkeys appear to be capable of mating with ponies as mules also exist in Equestria.

Earthworm
Earthworms are featured in Applebuck Season and Dragonshy. In Applebuck Season, Applejack added some earthworms by having misheard them as "wheatworms" to the "baked bads" she and Pinkie Pie created, which was one of the reasons of food poisoning of plenty of ponies later in said episode. In Dragonshy, Fluttershy tossed a trio of worms to a trio of waiting birds and then, because she carried them in her mouth, spat and blushed.

Fish
Fish are seen in multiple episodes. In Griffon the Brush Off, two fish are seen poking their heads out of the water and approaching Fluttershy, who is standing on the shore. In Dragonshy, Fluttershy gives several fish to a pair of otters for food. In Winter Wrap Up, a single fish is briefly seen leaping over the water in a lake. In The Mysterious Mare Do Well, Rainbow Dash appears with a fish that accidentally got in her mouth while she was struggling to repair the dam.

Frog
Equestria's frogs, which appear in Feeling Pinkie Keen, seem cheerful and silly. Fluttershy decided there were too many in Ponyville's pond, so she transferred some of them to Froggy Bottom Bog. Pinkie Pie claimed to interpret one of the frogs' croaks for Twilight, though it is unclear whether frogs actually speak. Later, one appeared to point the way for Fluttershy.

Goat
A goat can be seen in Fluttershy's home in May the Best Pet Win! Two goats with headsets appear in Putting Your Hoof Down as Iron Will's sidekicks. They communicate with Iron Will by bleating, not talking.

Horse
Horses are the larger members of the equine subspecies Equus ferus caballus, which also includes ponies, their smaller relatives. In The Best Night Ever, Twilight Sparkle uses a transformation spell to change mice into horse-like creatures that she refers to as horses. The windigos in Hearth's Warming Eve look more like horses than ponies. The delegates from Saddle Arabia in Magic Duel strongly resemble horses, particularly the Arabian breed. The term "horse" has also been used in reference to ponies.

Human
Groucho glasses with human noses on them appear in two episodes. In Party of One, Pinkie Pie and Gummy each wear a pair of Groucho glasses as part of their disguise. In It's About Time, Pinkie's party supplies include multiple pairs of Groucho glasses, one of which is inadvertently worn by Twilight Sparkle after the unicorn crashes into Fluttershy carrying the supplies. In Sonic Rainboom, Pinkie Pie wears foam finger which represents human's hand while cheering for Rainbow Dash's performance. A drawing of a human silhouette pinned to the wall appears in episodes Baby Cakes and A Friend in Deed. Iron Will who appears in the episode Putting Your Hoof Down is a minotaur: a hybrid of a human and a bull.

Various humans have appeared along with ponies in merchandise and in other media such as commercials, some humans being cartoon characters and others being played by live-action actors. Cartoon humans include characters who appear on some of WeLoveFine's My Little Pony Project 2012 art shirts, characters who appear in Electronic Arts' Hasbro iOS app Monopoly Hotels, and characters from other Hub-aired shows who appear in some of the channel's promotional crossover media. Live-action humans include the self-played Tori Spelling in nine Hub promos set around A Canterlot Wedding - Part 1 and A Canterlot Wedding - Part 2, young girls in other promos (with Princess Celestia in one for Target's Canterlot toys and other merchandise, with Princess Cadance in one for the Pony Wedding talking toy of her, and/or with Pinkie Pie and Rarity in ones for the Pony Wedding toy of the Pony Princess Wedding Castle), students and a teacher at Hub High School with Rainbow Dash and Megatron from Transformers Prime in the Hub promo Hub High, and members of The Aquabats in The Aquabats! Super Show! episode Cowboy Android! and in some of The Hub's promotional crossover media. The UK &amp; Ireland version of Boomerang's promotional webpage and commercial for their 2011 Make it a My Little Pony Christmas competition both show Santa in silhouette, with his flying sleigh pulled by Fluttershy and Twilight Sparkle on the webpage and by Princess Celestia in the commercial. Santa Claus was similarly an unseen character in previous generations of My Little Pony.

On August 28, 2011, Jayson Thiessen was asked regarding the show "Humans? Please tell me that you will not add them at any point" and answered "heavens no!" On August 5 and October 6, 2012, comic book artist Andy Price respectively stated regarding the comic "Humans: Nope. Nothing that does a major stray from what is established in the show" and "WILL THERE BE HUMANS? No. We will not be changing the direction set by the show, nor will we introduce elements that do not fit the show."

Lion
Lions appear in The Cutie Pox, where a group of them is tamed by Apple Bloom after her Cutie Pox cause her to receive a lion-taming cutie mark. Manticores, lion-like creatures with bat wings and scorpion tails, also appear in the series, residing in Everfree Forest.

Mouse
Mice appear in multiple episodes. Fluttershy cares for a wheelchair-bound brown mouse she addresses as Mr. Mousey in A Bird in the Hoof, who is joined by a gray mouse and a white mouse as he wheels into their hole in the wall of Fluttershy's cottage. Four of Fluttershy's white mouse friends appear in The Best Night Ever, and Twilight attempts to turn them into horses to pull the carriage. In The Last Roundup, a white mouse snacks on a cherry while sitting on a beam near the ceiling. In Putting Your Hoof Down, one of Fluttershy's white mice briefly takes her box of food pellets from her and eats a large amount of the pellets. In comic book issue #1 on page 3, a brown mouse snacks on a cherry while sitting in a corner, watched angrily by a stallion and hungrily by one of artist Andy Price's cats.

Mule
A mule appears in a single shot in Applebuck Season as a sight gag when Twilight Sparkle chastises Applejack for being stubborn. Unlike other incidental animals in Equestria, this mule is capable of speech. The mule, voiced by James Wootton, was able to express the fact that he was not offended by Twilight's statement. When Rarity is mistreated in A Dog and Pony Show, one of her grievances is for being called a mule. She appears to be deeply offended, genuinely or not, for being called a mule, and likens it to being called ugly. This mule returns in the cold opening of Hurricane Fluttershy after Rainbow Dash says "Be cool or be mule"; this time meaning boring, before flying down to the mule to say "No offense". The mule responds with the same voice line as his previous appearance. This mule returns again in One Bad Apple. Despite Ponyville's local mule's mild mannerisms, mules in Equestria are also capable of performing intellectual tasks, as portrayed by Mulia Mild's culinary skills of making chocolate mousse in the form of a lifelike moose in the episode MMMystery on the Friendship Express.

Pig
Pigs are domestic swine who are kept by ponies as pets or farm animals. They first appear in the The Show Stoppers, where the Cutie Mark Crusaders try to earn their Cutie Marks through different means; one of them tries to feed the Apple family's pigs their slop, but this is clearly not their special talent, despite the pigs being grateful. Pigs reappear in The Return of Harmony Part 2. When the evil spirit Discord escapes his stone form and takes over the land, he alters everything in sight, including the pigs, and gives them wings. Luckily, they are returned to normal upon Discord's imprisonment. Pigs appear again in Sisterhooves Social, where they are entered in a special contest of the Sisterhooves Social for best pigs; two are seen there belonging to Golden Harvest and Amethyst Star, and both had won blue ribbons. Pigs also appear in One Bad Apple. Even though ponies do not eat meat, Lauren Faust explains the reason why pigs are raised is because the pigs "needed a place to stay" and might be used for finding truffles.

Rabbit
A large number of rabbits are seen in Applebuck Season when Fluttershy organizes an annual rabbit census. The census goes awry when Applejack and Winona aggressively corner the bunnies, and the frightened bunnies panic and stampede Ponyville.

Fluttershy keeps one bunny, Angel, as a close companion, going so far as to consult him about getting the extra gala ticket in The Ticket Master. Angel, like other rabbits, seems to be incapable of speech.

When Rainbow Dash is looking for a pet in the episode May the Best Pet Win!, Fluttershy suggests a rabbit and says they are "cutesy and wootsie and quick as can be".

Sheep
Sheep are domestic ruminants, and a large herd of them are shown to be kept at the Apple family's farm in the episode Sisterhooves Social. In the episode, Applejack and Apple Bloom worked together to round them up back in to their pen; however, it is revealed that sheep (like most hoofed creatures in Equestria) are capable of speech and complain that if the Apple sisters wanted them to go back into their pen they could've just asked. Their request goes unheeded and they are ignored. In Dragon Quest, Spike rides a sheep up a mountain. Tiny ewes of different colors appear in the episodes The Crystal Empire - Part 1 and The Crystal Empire - Part 2.

Snail
A snail is briefly seen crawling over the face of petrified Twilight Sparkle in the episode Stare Master, shortly after the Cutie Mark Crusaders fell over while escaping the cockatrice. Snails has a pink glum-faced snail with purple shell as his cutie mark.

Spider
Spiders are seen mainly in Luna Eclipsed. Princess Luna, angered by Ponyvillians not wanting to socialize with her, transformed multiple toy spiders to living ones with a single magical blast from her horn, causing terror amongst ponies, most of whom proved to be heavily afraid of them. Zecora also wore some artificial spiders in her hair in said episode. In The Show Stoppers, the Cutie Mark Crusaders used spider props for their play. Spiders also appear in Read It and Weep as one of the obstacles Daring Do encounters, and one of them was seen speaking with Pinkie Pie's voice in Rainbow Dash's imagination, as Pinkie Pie entered her room. Spider cobwebs are also seen in multiple episodes. In comic book issue #2, different spiders appear on a page reused as the issue's Dynamic Forces exclusive Cover RE. Spiders are also featured on the issue's Cover A.

Squid
A large blue squid chases the Cutie Mark Crusaders in a lake in the episode The Show Stoppers. The Crusaders try to find different ways to earn their cutie marks, and one attempt involves scuba diving in the lake, but their dive is quickly cut short by an angry squid who chases them out of the lake. Although its one visible eye appears angry, it isn't being terribly aggressive and is not attacking the foals.

Miscellaneous

 * Pinkie Pie's pet, Gummy, is a baby alligator.
 * A badger is among the group of animals comforting Fluttershy in Hurricane Fluttershy and among the group of animals and ponies hiding from the Pinkie Pie duplicates in Too Many Pinkie Pies.
 * Beavers are seen in The Cutie Mark Chronicles. Pinkie Pie also dresses like a beaver in A Friend in Deed.
 * A brown beetle is seen very briefly on one of the hydra's necks just after Fluttershy releases the frogs to the wild in Feeling Pinkie Keen. Some different-looking beetles are also seen crawling in the temple in Read It and Weep.
 * A cheetah chases Daring Do in Read It and Weep.
 * A pair of chipmunks is seen briefly during the opening sequence of Dragonshy.
 * Centipedes are seen crawling in the temple in Read It and Weep.
 * A cricket appears in May the Best Pet Win!
 * Crocodiles appear as obstacles in Read It and Weep.
 * Sea Swirl has two dolphins as her cutie mark.
 * A dragonfly is seen flying in the Froggy Bottom Bog. Flitter also has dragonflies as her cutie mark.
 * Although meat eaters in the real world, a pair of ferrets were very happy to receive a basket of vegetables in Winter Wrap Up. Fluttershy also gives fish to a similar pair in Dragonshy, more befitting of their diet. A ferret also appears among the group of animals comforting Fluttershy in Hurricane Fluttershy.
 * Rainbow Dash used a firefly lantern in Read It and Weep.
 * Hedgehogs are woken up in Winter Wrap Up.
 * A jaguar chases Daring Do in Read It and Weep.
 * A ladybug appears in May the Best Pet Win!, and one with the same design appears in Ponyville Confidential.
 * A lynx chases Daring Do in Read It and Weep.
 * Though a live moose is never shown, there is a chocolate statue made in the image of a moose created by Mulia Mild in MMMystery on the Friendship Express.
 * In Read It and Weep, mosquitoes are mentioned in the book Daring Do and the Quest for the Sapphire Stone. Four of them can be seen in the following portrayal of the story.
 * An otter appears in the Find a Pet Song.
 * Fluttershy is seen visiting a den in the episode Winter Wrap Up, home to a pair of small porcupines. Once awake, they play out the old gag of poking each other with their quills during a hug.
 * Raccoons are seen eating the cotton candy in The Return of Harmony Part 1.
 * There was a tile with a rat on it in Read It and Weep.
 * A seal appears briefly during the "Find a Pet Song" in May the Best Pet Win!.
 * Twilight Sparkle ends her failed attempt to help Fluttershy in Winter Wrap Up by encountering a family of skunks.
 * Twilight unwittingly wakes a den of snakes in Winter Wrap Up, and later jumps into a tree when Fluttershy awakes a different den of them. Cobras are also seen in Read It and Weep, as obstacles for Daring Do.
 * Spider monkeys reside in the royal garden in The Best Night Ever.
 * There are two squirrels, in separate dens, awoken during the song in Winter Wrap Up. In May the Best Pet Win!, Fluttershy offers a flying squirrel to Rainbow Dash as a pet during the "Find a Pet Song."
 * A tiger chases Daring Do in Read It and Weep.
 * Once the ice is melted, turtles are seen swimming in a pond in Winter Wrap Up. A turtle can be seen in Griffon the Brush Off approaching Fluttershy as Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash prepare a prank squirting turtle. Tank is a tortoise.
 * Wallaroos reside in the royal garden in The Best Night Ever.
 * A wasp is a pet candidate for Rainbow Dash in May the Best Pet Win!
 * While corrupted by Discord, Applejack was to have mentioned a pod of whales in a line that was cut from either The Return of Harmony Part 1 or The Return of Harmony Part 2.
 * Pinkie Pie makes wolf-like sounds in The Return of Harmony Part 2 when she joins for the final stand against Discord.
 * Zecora is a zebra. A fan-designed WeLoveFine T-shirt depicting a host of non-Hasbro characters shows a zebra pony mare along with two half-pony zebroids, one of them a half-Earth pony mare and the other of them a half-Pegasus zony stallion, as described by Samantha Bragg, the artist of the T-shirt design, in posts on deviantART.