History Main / GhostlyAnimals

* In ''Fanfic/TheFableOfJoyfulWing'', the main character is rescued by the ghosts of the loyal guard dogs of a monastery that the villain's nephew had burned down. They're completely harmless to mortals, but since the villain is a spirit himself.

** [[EverythingsBetterWithMonkeys Wrinkly Kong]] passed away some time before the events of ''Donkey Kong 64'', but she appears as a ghost when she shows up for the rest of the series.

* ''Series/{{Medium}}: "Bite Me" reveals that animals (in this case, a tarantula) can become ghosts and even have GhostlyGoals.

* ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'': "Ghost" was a template in 3.5 edition that normally couldn't be applied to animals since most lacked the charisma score necessary to become a ghost. There were a few exceptions, however, mostly {{Dire Beast}}s and Legendary Animals. There was also a Ghost Brute template added in another book that was specifically there to create ghostly animals and other low-charisma creatures.

* In Japanese folklore, suppon no yurei are the angry ghosts of turtles that come back to haunt the people who killed or ate them.

* In the ''WesternAnimation/BackAtTheBarnyard'' episode, "The Haunting", Otis builds a fun shack over a pet burial ground, disturbing the grave of Winky, a rabbit who lived on the farm 100 years ago. As retribution, Winky's ghost possesses Pig's body, then Winky summons the ghosts of his animal friends to take over the farm. Otis and Bessy have to team up to save their friends and capture the ghostly animals.
* The ''WesternAnimation/TheCasagrandes'' episode "Bad Cluck" focuses on the ghost of a chicken named Alfredo haunting the eponymous family (plus the Santiagos, who live with them) due to holding a grudge against their pet parrot Sergio (who's still alive).

* ''WesternAnimation/CodenameKidsNextDoor'': In "Operation: G.H.O.S.T.", Kuki's favorite hamster Chubbo dies. During the night, the spirits of all the deceased hamsters that once served the KND drag Kuki into their afterlife, where she gets reunited with Chubbo and is given the choice to stay. Because she denies the offer, the spirits start haunting the outside world until some currently alive hamsters stop them.

* The ''WesternAnimation/DextersLaboratory'' episode "Filet of Soul" is about Dexter and Dee Dee being haunted by the ghost of their dead pet goldfish. Later, the other animal spirits hold Dee Dee hostage until the fish (and its soul) is properly flushed.

* ''WesternAnimation/GrizzlyTalesForGruesomeKids'': The episode "An Elephant Never Forgets" ends with a shot of an elephant family. The baby elephant, (which had been the source of an elephant's foot utilised in the episode and had been briefly revived), is shown to be transparent, signifying that it is dead. Doubles as a {{Tearjerker}}.
** Another episode ended with Spindleshanks (a spider) being killed and reappearing as a ghost, much to Uncle Grizzly's delight. Thankfully for the spider, he's OK by the next episode.
* ''WesternAnimation/RegularShow'': Mordecai and Rigby have died and become ghosts a couple times in the series, although they themselves are too anthropomorphic to really count for this trope. In "Blind Trust" however, Mordecai, Rigby, and a blinded Benson accidentally wander on a sacred animal burial ground where the animals actively try to kill them until the trio makes it to the edge of a cliff where the animals will let them go if they survive the drop.
* ''WesternAnimation/TheRealGhostbusters'': The Rollerghoster was a group of ghostly circus animals who took 10 people hostage and can animate an amusement ride. It consists of an elephant, a horse, a bear, a snake, a monkey, and a gorilla.
** Another episode had Simon Quegg's cruelty manifest as a powerful horse spectre and buggy bonded to him.
* ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'': Among some of the ghosts which visit Bart in the episode "Flanders' Ladder" are the cats Snowball II and III, and Coltrane.

* ''WesternAnimation/BrotherBear'': When people die, their spirits take the form of their totem animals; Sitka's spirit, for example, takes the form of a bald eagle. Some of the spirits are also implied to be of deceased animals (Koda notes that his grandparents are spirits during the "Night on the Mammoths" sequence).

* TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'': "Ghost" was a template in 3.5 edition that normally couldn't be applied to animals since most lacked the charisma score necessary to become a ghost. There were a few exceptions, however, mostly {{Dire Beast}}s and Legendary Animals. There was also a Ghost Brute template added in another book that was specifically there to create ghostly animals and other low-charisma creatures.

* Quite a few examples show up in ''Literature/ScaryStoriesToTellInTheDark'', almost one for each volume. Some noteworthy examples include "The White Wolf" (''Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark''), "The Little Black Dog" (''More Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark''), and "The Black Dog" (''Scary Stories 3: More Tales to Chill Your Bones'').

* In ''VideoGame/Warcraft3, ''VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft and ''VideoGame/HearthstoneHeroesOfWarcraft'', Shamans can summon [[NobleWolf Spirit Wolves]]. In [=WoW=], Beastmaster Hunters can tame Exotic Beasts, including some spectral animals, and the pet battle system also has a few animal ghosts too.

** In ''VideoGame/DonkeyKongCountry2DiddysKongQuest, the vulture boss Krow comes back as a ghost called "Kreepy Krow" after the Kongs defeat him in the first world, Gangplank Galleon. The game also features skeletal ghost [[NeverSmileAtACrocodile Kremlings]] named Kackles.
** Parodied in ''VideoGame/DonkeyKong64 with the "ghosts", which are actually just Kremlings dressed in bedsheets.
** [[EverythingsBetterWithMonkeys Wrinkly Kong]] passed away some time before the events of Donkey Kong 64, but she appears as a ghost when she shows up for the rest of the series.

These specters usually appear as sidekicks to other ghosts in GhostFiction, although they can appear on their own as well. They may be used for world building purposes or, in fiction which depict ghosts as malevolent entities, to provide an extra threat to the heroes. After all, a vicious looking animalistic spirit can be more ferocious than a normal human. Often, they may also show up as a pet animal (often a cat or a dog), either seeking revenge or otherwise acting as a companion. To make it clear, for this trope to apply, the creature in question must be no higher than TalkingAnimal on the SlidingScaleOfAnthropomorphism. May occur as a result of an AstralProjection.

** "Stray" has a doghouse which turns out to be haunted by the ghost of a dog who was buried in the yard.

** In the fifth issue of ''Ghostbusters International'', the team face off against a herd of ghostly buffalo, who had been summoned by the presence of buffalo hunter Edward Quinn.

* In ''Fanfic/TheFableOfJoyfulWing'', the main character is rescued by the ghosts of the loyal guard dogs of a monastery that the villain's nephew had burned down. They're completely harmless to mortals, but since the villain is a spirit himself..

* ''WesternAnimation/ParaNorman'': In addition to human ghosts, Norman can see the ghosts of animals, including a raccoon and a dog, the horse of a Civil War soldier and a flying bird ghost.

* In Japanese folklore, suppon no yurei are the angry ghosts of turtles which come back to haunt the people who killed or ate them.

* When the vampires of ''Series/{{What We Do In The Shadows}}'' summon their own ghosts and attempt to finish the business left over from their human lives, Nandor's ghost reunites with the ghost of his beloved horse, Jahan (aka "John"). In life, Nandor had been forced to eat Jahan, and felt guilty because the horse was actually quite tasty.

* ''VideoGame/GhostTrick'': [[spoiler: It is revealed later on that Sissel, the ghost being followed for the game, was actually a cat. Additionally, it is also revealed that the lamp that interacts with Sissel at the start is the ghost of a Pomerarian dog named Missile]].

** In addition to its Alolan form, who is a ghost type, a Marowak (who is based off dinosaurs) appears as a ghost in Lavender Tower in Gen I and it?s remakes.
** Frillish and Jellicent are Ghost types which resemble jellyfish and have a habit of dragging prey to their doom underwater.

* While not traditional ghosts, [[PredatorsAreMean The Predators]] in ''VideoGame/ThemsFightinHerds'' haven't quite escaped their prison realm after their banishment by non-carnivores, and they can only manifest themselves into the real world as ghostly shadow-like versions of themselves, since they're kind of trapped between worlds.
* ''VideoGame/TheSims'': As with humans, it is possible for cats, dogs, and horses to die and leave a translucent versions of themselves.

** Three minor recurring antagonists are the Ghost Vultures, a trio of talking ghost vultures working under Vlad Masters who possess super speed and enhanced strength. Every animal that appears as a trophy on the his hunting lodge wall is also a ghost animal under his thrall.

* In the ''WesternAnimation/AdventureTime'' has this in droves. One episode even centers around a ghost mosquito.

''Anime/PokemonTheSeries''

* When the vampires of ''Series/{{What We Do In The Shadows}}'' summon their own ghosts and attempt to finish the business left over from their human lives, Nandor's ghost reunites with the ghost of his beloved horse, Jahan (aka "John"). In life, Nandor had been forced to eat Jahan, and felt guilty because the horse was actually quite tasty.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheNightmareBeforeChristmas'' has the ghost dog Zero, although he more resembles [[BedsheetGhost a handkerchief]] than an actual dog.

* ''WesternAnimation/RegularShow'': Mordecai and Rigby have died and become ghosts a couple times in the series. In "Blind Trust" however, Mordecai, Rigby, and a blinded Benson accidentally wander on a sacred animal burial ground where the animals actively try to kill them until the trio makes it to the edge of a cliff where the animals will let them go if they survive the drop.