Everybody loves animals. Everybody loves superheroes. Mix the two together and you get an awesome combination resulting in some of the coolest, wackiest, and most fun characters in comic books. The pets on this list are just that exactly: pets. This list does not include anthropomorphic animals such as Throg or B'dg. Check out the fifteen coolest pets in comic books, ranked.
15 Gleek
Gleek is the monkey sidekick of Zan and Jayna, also known as the Wonder Twins. He is the only character on this list to not debut in a comic book, as he first appeared in the Super Friends television show. He has the powers of elasticity, and is often seen flying with the Twins to their next adventure. Jayna is an eagle, and Zan turns into water, where Gleek holds a bucket containing him.
14 Devil Dinosaur
Devil Dinosaur is a dinosaur (duh) from Earth-78411, a world straight into the Cretaceous period. He is larger, faster, and more intelligent than a normal T. Rex,and originally shared a psychic link with a neanderthal hero named Moon Boy. He can now switch bodies with Lunella Lafayette, aka Moon Girl, one of the smartest people in the Marvel Universe.
13 Bat-Cow
Bat Cow is the first member of the Bat family on this list, and belongs to Damian Wayne. She was rescued by Batman and Robin from a slaughterhouse after she was infected by a group of criminals.
The Waynes adopted Bat-Cow, gave her a mask, and she now lives in the Wayne Barn. She was last seen fighting a bull named Laffa, who was clearly made up to look like The Joker.
12 Jarro
Starro was actually the first villain the Justice League had ever united against, but during the events of No Justice, the psychic alien dies a heroes death defending the Leaguers. However, it’s later revealed Batman saved a piece of Starro, and put him in a jar. Jarro helps Batman during interrogations, has dreams of being the next Robin, and even calls Batman “Dad”. Who knew an evil starfish could ever become so adorable?
11 Old Lace
Moving back into the Marvel Universe, the first dinosaur on the list belongs to Runaways member Gert Yorkes. Old Lace was created in the 87th century by Gert’s parents, and shares a telepathic bond with the teen. Old Lace’s psychic link is eventually transferred to Gert’s boyfriend, Chase.
This dinosaur is also one of the only pets on this list to have a live action appearance, as she is a supporting character in Runaways, the MCU television show based on the comic of the same name.
10 Dex-Starr
Dex-Starr is a member of the Red Lantern Corps and is often seen at the side of the Corps leader, Atrocitus. Dexter was a normal house cat whose owner was robbed and murdered.
When a group of thugs thought it would be funny to throw him off a bridge, a red lantern ring found its way onto his little paw. He vowed to find and kill her murderers. As if a normal, angry cat isn’t frightening enough, this one spits napalm from his mouth.
9 Ace/Titus The Bat-Hound
Ace is a German Shepherd owned by Batman and Robin. He was adopted by the Dynamic duo when his original owner was kidnapped by a gang. Ace wears a mask to conceal his identity as Bruce Wayne’s dog. During the events of the New 52, Ace was reintroduced as Damian Wayne’s Great Hound, Titus.
DC Editors didn’t originally allow the dog to be named Ace, and Titus became the New 52 version of the Bat-Hound. Recently in DC Rebirth, Bruce Wayne adopted a German shepherd named Ace, but when Krypto reformed the Legion of Super-Pets, Ace remained sleeping by the fire, confirming Titus as the new Bat Hound.
8 Zabu
Zabu is a sabre-tooth tiger that is a resident of the Savage Land. He discovered a young boy named Kevin Plunder, and the two grew up together against the wild. Kevin took on the name Ka-Zar, and became the defender of the Savage Land.
In a Spider-Man one-shot, Peter comforted Zabu by taking him to the Museum of Natural History and seeing the displays on sabretooth tigers. Zabu is now a member of the Pet Avengers.
7 Redwing
Redwing is a falcon owned by Sam Wilson, AKA Falcon. Unlike most of the other entries on this list, Redwing is just a normal falcon that Sam adopted as a part of his superhero identity. The two became even closer when an incident involving the cosmic cube linked the two together telepathically.
Due to the more realistic aspects of the MCU, Redwing was changed from an actual bird into a drone commanded by Sam Wilson, but true Marvel fans hope to see this feathery friend alongside Anthony Mackie in the new TV show The Falcon and The Winter Soldier.
6 Lockheed
When the X-Men were kidnapped by an alien species called the Brood, Kitty Pryde met Lockheed. She immediately became protective of him due to his resemblance to a creature in a fairy tale she told Magik hours before. He became a stowaway when the X-Men returned home, and his presence as Kitty’s pet was accepted by the rest of the team. He has all the basic powers of a dragon, including flight, fire breath, strength, and durability. During the events of Secret Wars, Lockheed met another similar creature named Puff, and the two had children together.
5 Ampersand
The only non mainstream addition on this list, Ampersand appears in the pages of Y: The Last Man. Ampersand is a capuchin monkey owned by Yorick Brown, who lives in a world wiped out by a deadly plague. Ampersand and Yorick are the only two male mammals left on Earth, and the two share an extremely close bond. It is later revealed that Ampersand is a mutated creature, and his relationship with Yorick is actually the reason the two survived the plague. He is named after the symbol, &, as a reminder of Yorick’s girlfriend, as he always saw the two of them as Yorick & Beth.
4 Bubastis
Watchmen is often praised as one of the greatest comic books of all time, so it’s no surprise the main pet of the series ranks so highly on the list. Bubastis was created by Adrian Vedit, AKA Ozymandias. She is a mutated lynx genetically engineered to be a loyal companion to Adrian.
During the climax of the novel, Bubastis is vaporized by her own master in an attempt to kill Doctor Manhattan, but fails. Veidt clones Bubastis, and discovers the DNA has been merged with Manhattan’s, leading the now baby lynx to have similar powers. Through the pages of Doomsday Clock, Bubastis II is used as a compass to locate Doctor Manhattan in the DC Universe.
3 Cosmo The Space Dog
During the Cold War, the United States and the USSR were racing to see who could accomplish space travel first. Poor Cosmo was a Soviet Golden Retriever/Labrador mix sent into space on a rocket ship. As he drifted through space, Cosmo was mutated and gained powerful telekinetic abilities. He is now the Head of Security at Knowhere, and is a close ally of the Guardians of the Galaxy. Cosmo can be briefly seen in the Collector’s Collection in the first Guardians of the Galaxy movie and the post-credit scene.
2 Lockjaw
Lockjaw is the friendly protector of the Inhumans, an ancient race that derived from human beings thousands of years ago. He is the escort and transportation services of the Inhuman Royal Family. Lockjaw has the ability to teleport great distances, even across dimensions if he wishes to. He is one of the founding members of the Pet Avengers, along with most of the Marvel animals on this list.
1 Krypto, The Super Dog
The obvious choice for number one, the Kryptonian canine flew into readers hearts in Adventure Comics #210. The dog of steel is an ever-loyal companion to the Superman family ever since the destruction of Krypton. Powered by the yellow sun’s rays, Krypto shares all of the same abilities as his best friend, and the two are often together just like any other man and his dog. They fly through the air, play fetch on Mars, and go on walks alongside the moon. Superman is meant to be the perfect man, so of course his loyal companion is the perfect dog.