How to Make Pets in Tomodachi Life: Unlock Conditions, Missing Pet Fixes, and Dog Ideas

Make pets in Item Workshop. In the creation screen, choose “make a new item,” then choose “treasure,” then choose “pet.”

If pets do not appear, check whether Item Workshop is open, whether treasure creation has been unlocked through Wishing Fountain progression, and whether you are looking under treasure instead of food or clothes.

The full flow includes three separate actions: create the pet in Item Workshop, buy the finished pet from Treasure Shop, then give it to a resident. Keeping those steps separate makes it much easier to tell where you are stuck.

• Nintendo official item workshop page Official source for the item workshop supporting custom food, clothes, pets, objects, buildings, and more.
• GameWith pet guide Strategy-site reference for the pet category, unlock flow, and base types.
• Game8 pet guide Strategy-site reference for pet creation and buying finished treasure items.

Nintendo officially confirms the Item Workshop capability: original items such as food, clothes, pets, objects, and buildings can be made there.

The practical route through treasure, the Wishing Fountain unlock, base types, and Treasure Shop purchase flow are treated here as strategy-guide confirmed details.

That is why this page separates official facts, strategy-guide steps, and archive-based drawing examples instead of presenting every detail as a Nintendo statement.

Pets are made in the island facility called Item Workshop.

From the creation screen, first choose to make a new item. Then choose the item type “treasure,” and from there choose “pet.” Pets are separate from food and clothing, so you will not find pet bases by staying on the food or clothes screens.

After a pet is finished, it is not automatically ready to hand to a resident. The finished pet appears through the Treasure Shop flow, where you buy it before gifting it.

In other words, “make it in Item Workshop” and “buy it so you can give it away” are two different steps. If a pet is finished but does not appear as a gift, check Treasure Shop next.

If you are searching for where the pet option is, the fastest check is: Item Workshop first, treasure category second, pet option third.

This is the most common place players get stuck: they open Item Workshop but keep browsing food or clothes, so the pet base never appears.

The game treats pets like treasure-style custom items even though they look like animals. That is why the category can feel unintuitive the first time.

Remember the split: creation happens in Item Workshop, possession for gifting happens after buying the finished item from Treasure Shop.

Pet creation has three practical requirements: Item Workshop must be available, treasure creation must be added through Wishing Fountain progression, and the finished pet must be bought before gifting.

If one part is missing, the pet option can stay hidden even though the workshop itself already exists.

Early in the game, the most productive route is to add residents, solve Mii requests, and keep progressing Wishing Fountain wishes instead of checking the workshop over and over.

1. Unlock Item Workshop

First, make Item Workshop available on your island.

Strategy guides describe the workshop unlock as happening after you have around six residents and a Mii asks for something made by the manager. If the facility is missing, add residents and solve Mii requests regularly.

If the building does not exist yet, there is no in-game entrance for pet creation. Focus on resident count, requests, and island progression before looking for the pet menu.

Do not judge only by the resident count. After adding residents, keep checking Mii request bubbles and normal progression events.

While waiting for the workshop, you can plan the pet design: body color for a dog, eyes and whiskers for a cat, beak color for a bird, or round ears for a bear.

2. Unlock treasure creation through Wishing Fountain

Even after Item Workshop opens, pets may not be available immediately.

Pets sit under the treasure route, so Wishing Fountain progression needs to add the Item Workshop treasure option. GameWith and Game8 describe treasure creation as a Wishing Fountain unlock around rank 4.

If Item Workshop is available but pets do not show up, check whether treasure creation is already unlocked at Wishing Fountain.

The key distinction is that “Item Workshop exists” and “treasure can be created” are not the same thing. Food and clothes can be available while treasure, and therefore pets, remain hidden.

If you are specifically searching for Wishing Fountain and treasure, you are probably looking for this missing unlock rather than a pet-named wish.

3. Buy the finished pet before gifting it

A pet is not finished for gifting just because you completed the drawing screen.

After creation, the pet is handled as a Treasure Shop item. Buy it there, then give it to the resident you want.

If you made a pet but cannot gift it, the missing step is often the Treasure Shop purchase.

For matching pets across several residents, make one design, check that the finished version looks right, then buy as many copies as you need.

If you plan to adjust the name, sound, or color later, do that before distributing it so you do not accidentally change a pet that residents already have.

Once the feature is available, follow the steps below.

If you want to edit a pet you already made, use the created-items list. If you want to preserve the old design, copy it or save a separate version first.

Step 1: Choose “make a new item” in Item Workshop

Go to Item Workshop on your island.

Choose the option to make a new item. If you are editing something you already made, open the created-items list instead.

For a first pet, starting from a new item is easier than editing an old design, because mistakes are easier to abandon.

Step 2: Choose “treasure” → “pet”

On the item type screen, choose treasure first. Then choose pet from the treasure types.

If you are on food or clothes, pet bases will not appear. Always enter through the treasure category when making a pet.

This is the most common point of confusion for players who know Item Workshop is involved but cannot find the actual pet option.

Step 3: Choose a pet base

Pets have several base shapes.

The common base types are blank, dog, cat, bird, and bear. Strategy guides list the same set of base types.

For a first attempt, dog or cat is easier because the silhouette already tells the player what kind of animal it is.

Blank is the most flexible, but you must decide the face position and silhouette yourself.

Base	Good for
Blank	Original creatures, slime-like pets, plush toys, mascots
Dog	Dogs, wolves, fox-like pets
Cat	Cats, tigers, lion-like pets
Bird	Small birds, owls, penguin-style pets
Bear	Bears, pandas, round plush pets

Step 4: Draw the look

After choosing a base, use pens, brushes, stamps, and erasers to draw the pet.

If drawing is difficult, decide the large features before adding detail.

For a dog, place ear color, eye position, nose shape, and tail or body mood first. For a cat, add inner ears, whiskers, eye shape, and simple stripes.

Use the detail-oriented drawing mode when you need to adjust brush and eraser shapes more carefully.

Avoid starting with shadows or fur texture. Put eyes, nose, mouth, ears, and large color blocks first, then add markings and highlights at the end.

Step 5: Set name, traits, movement, and sound

When the drawing is done, give the pet a name.

Then set traits, movement, and sound. These settings matter almost as much as the drawing.

An energetic dog fits a lively motion and bright sound. A calm cat works better with slower movement and a quieter sound.

Even if two pets have the same drawing, the name and sound can make them feel very different when a resident uses them.

Step 6: Buy it at Treasure Shop and gift it

After the pet is complete, buy it at Treasure Shop.

The purchased pet can then be gifted to a resident. Residents may carry it around or keep it in their room.

If you made a pet for a favorite Mii, choose a pet that matches their room, outfit, personality, or island role.

If you feel like the pet “cannot be given,” check Treasure Shop rather than the drawing screen.

If the pet option is missing, check the unlocks in order instead of redrawing or restarting.

Most issues come from being in the wrong category or not having treasure creation unlocked yet.

Check from top to bottom. If Item Workshop is missing, solve resident and request progression. If treasure is missing, check Wishing Fountain. If the pet is made but cannot be gifted, check Treasure Shop.

“Cannot make” and “cannot gift” are different problems. Cannot make means the pet category or creation entrance is missing. Cannot gift means the pet is created but not purchased or held yet.

Be careful when editing a pet after distribution. Editing the same design can affect residents who already received it. If you want a color variant, copy the design first.

If you still cannot find it, look at the screen title. You may be inside Item Workshop but still browsing food or clothes instead of treasure.

Dog, cat, bird, and bear bases are easiest when you lean on the base shape instead of over-drawing small texture.

These tips focus on making the pet readable at small size, which matters more than realistic detail.

How to make a dog

Choose the dog base first.

A cute dog usually needs readable ears, round eyes, a small dark nose, a simple mouth, and easy body colors such as white, brown, black, or cream.

For a Shiba-style pet, use a brown body with a white muzzle and small pale eyebrow marks. For a Dalmatian-style pet, keep the body white and add a few black spots.

Do not add too many spots or fur lines at the start. Make the ear color, nose position, and muzzle readable first.

You can also use the dog base for wolves or fox-like pets by changing the body color to gray or orange and making the ears stronger.

Part	Tip
Ears	Use a darker color so the animal reads as dog-like.
Eyes	Round, slightly larger eyes make the pet cuter.
Nose	A small black nose is stable and readable.
Mouth	Keep it short and simple.
Body	White, brown, black, and cream are easy starting colors.

How to make a cat

A cat is mostly defined by eyes and whiskers.

For a cute cat, make the eyes slightly larger and add short whiskers on both sides.

If you add stripes, use only a few on the head or back. Too many thin lines can turn muddy at small size.

Tiger-like or lion-like pets can also start from the cat base. Use thicker stripes for a tiger, or a darker face area for a lion mood.

The archive cat links below are useful for deciding eye placement, whisker length, and how much empty space to leave on the face.

How to make a bird

Birds depend on body color and beak shape.

A yellow or orange beak makes the bird read immediately.

For a small bird, use round eyes and one bright body color. For an owl, make the eyes larger. For a penguin-style pet, use a dark outside and a white belly.

Do not start by drawing every feather. Make the beak, eyes, and belly color clear first.

For a penguin, the contrast between dark sides and white belly does more work than tiny wing details.

How to make a bear

Bears work best when they stay round and plush-like.

For a panda, use a white face with black ears and dark eye patches. You do not need many extra details.

For a teddy bear, use a brown body, a slightly lighter muzzle, a round nose, and a small mouth.

A realistic bear is harder to read at small size. Panda or plush styling is usually clearer in-game.

How to use the blank base

Blank bases are for original creatures, plush mascots, slimes, robots, game-inspired pets, and strange companion animals.

When using blank, decide where the face is first. If the face direction is unclear, the creature becomes hard to read.

For a slime, use simple round eyes and a mouth. For a robot, use square eyes and straight lines. For a plush pet, use round cheeks or small stitch marks.

If you are making a pet based on a favorite color palette, limit the colors to a main color, one accent, and the face color so it stays clean.

These archive entries are useful when you want a visual reference for cats, small animals, birds, mascots, or original pets.

There is not yet a strong dog-specific pet sheet to make central here, so dog and bear advice stays general for now. If better dog patterns are added later, they should be linked here.

When copying a pattern, adapt it to the pet base. For cats and small animals, copy the eye, nose, mouth, and main markings first, then decide whether the body details still fit.

You do not need to copy every line. Sometimes the best use of a pattern is to borrow just the face placement, color count, or silhouette.

If the exact animal you want is missing, use a nearby reference. A cat sheet can still teach eye placement for a dog, and a mascot sheet can teach color blocking for a blank-base pet.

• Derpy cat pet pattern sheet A strong cat reference. Use it for eye spacing, whisker placement, and how much empty face space to leave.
• Cat freedom pet reference Useful when you want multiple cat-style pets. Change body color and eye shape to create variations.
• Stardew Valley chicken and Junimo pets Good for bird and small creature proportions. The chicken fits bird bases; Junimo-style shapes work well on blank bases.
• Minecraft pet pattern sheets Good for blocky, pixel-style, or game-inspired pets on blank bases.
• Yahaha pet design A compact mascot reference. Useful for small face placement and round body balance.
• Negative ghost pet design A reference for ghost, character-style, or unusual pets that are not normal dogs or cats.

Finished pets are mainly for gifting to residents.

A pet feels better when it matches the Mii personality, room, outfit, or island story. Give a dog to an energetic Mii, a cat to a calm Mii, or a strange blank-base creature to an unusual Mii.

For matching groups, create one pet, buy multiple copies, and give them to several residents.

For color variants, save separate versions before distributing them. Editing one shared design can change the version residents already received.

You can also make seasonal or island-theme pets: bright birds for summer, white cats or bears for winter, or game-style mascots for a themed island.

To make pets in Tomodachi Life, unlock Item Workshop first, then unlock treasure creation through Wishing Fountain progression.

The core route is: open Item Workshop, make a new item, choose treasure, choose pet, pick a base, draw the look, set name and behavior, then buy the finished pet from Treasure Shop and gift it.

If pets do not appear, check Item Workshop, Wishing Fountain treasure unlocks, and the treasure category before assuming something is wrong with your save.

Dog, cat, bird, and bear bases are easiest for recognizable animals. Blank bases are best for original creatures, mascots, ghosts, robots, and game-inspired pets.

Start with large readable features such as eyes, nose, mouth, beak, ears, and color blocks. Details can come later.

1. Go to Item Workshop.
2. Choose “make a new item.”
3. Choose “treasure” → “pet.”
4. Choose a base.
5. Draw the appearance.
6. Set name, traits, movement, and sound.
7. Buy it at Treasure Shop and gift it to a resident.

Pet creation sits between Item Workshop drawing, Wishing Fountain progression, and treasure-style gifting.

Use these related pages when the pet guide points to a wider system.

• Wishing Fountain wishes and priorities Use this when you are deciding which unlocks to choose next.
• Palette House beginner drawing workflow Use this if drawing and saving custom items still feels unstable.
• Pattern sheet guide Use this when you want clear grids before drawing.