Pentomino animals: animal shapes, silhouettes & solutions

What is a pentomino animal?

A pentomino animal is an animal-shaped outline tiled with pentominoes—the twelve shapes of five edge-joined squares named F, I, L, N, P, T, U, V, W, X, Y and Z. Teachers and puzzle books often call a set of these silhouettes a pentomino zoo or animal shapes pack: same pieces as the classic 6×10 rectangle, but the board looks like a chick, dog, fish or giraffe instead of a box.

Unlike the full 60-cell rectangle (all 12 pieces), most animal puzzles use a subset so the silhouette stays crisp. Every outline below has 15 or 20 cells, so you need exactly three or four pieces. No overlaps, no hanging off the outline, and every shaded cell must be covered. If you are new to the letter names, skim the 12 pentomino shapes first, or print a cut-out set for a tabletop zoo.

Animal silhouette challenges

Try each outline with only the listed pieces. Hints sit under the board; colour solutions are further down if you want a peek. Solution counts were computed with the same DLX exact-cover engine as our pentomino solver.

Strategy for animal shapes

1. 1

   Count the cells

   Every outline here has 15 or 20 cells, so you need exactly 3 or 4 pentominoes. If your homemade animal is not a multiple of 5, it cannot be tiled.

2. 2

   Name the distinctive feature

   Neck, ears, humps, fins and legs force certain pieces. Put the I on a long neck, the U or V on a rounded haunch, the W on a stepped back.

3. 3

   Fill legs and corners early

   Thin legs and pointed ears trap space. Cover them before the chunky body so you do not leave a one-square gap.

4. 4

   Keep empty regions in multiples of five

   The same rule as rectangle pentominoes: an enclosed 7-cell pocket is already lost. Undo as soon as a region is not 5, 10, 15…

5. 5

   Check with the solver

   For rectangles use the free pentomino solver. For these animal outlines, compare with the colour solution gallery on this page—each one was computed and counted with DLX.

Solution gallery (spoilers)

Colour solutions for every animal above. Letters mark which pentomino covers each cell. The chick, turtle and giraffe each have a unique tiling with the listed set; the others have a few alternatives—try to find a second dog or fish before you peek.

Build your own pentomino zoo

• Draw a silhouette on squared paper and count the cells—keep the total a multiple of 5
• Start with 15–25 cells (3–5 pieces); larger animals need more of the 12-piece set and get harder fast
• Borrow distinctive features: long neck → I, two ears → thin pieces like N/Y, rounded body → P or U
• Verify with a friend or the online solver mindset: if a region of empty cells is not a multiple of 5, redesign the outline
• For classroom packs, print several outlines at once and let pairs race, then compare with this gallery

Practice online and keep going

Warm up on rectangles with how to solve a pentomino puzzle, then open the free pentomino solver for 6×10, 5×12 and 8×8 boards. Play the polyomino packing puzzle or the free packing puzzle on a phone, browse all 2,339 6×10 solutions, or hand kids starter boxes from pentominoes for kids. Cut-out pieces for a physical zoo are on the printable pentominoes page.