What to know
- Animals can be captured instead of chased or fenced
- Capture crates are crafted at the Farmer’s Workbench
- They work on babies and other small animals
- This is one of the fastest ways to stock a farm
Catching animals efficiently is a big quality-of-life upgrade in Hytale. Rather than pushing animals into pens or chasing them across fields, the game provides a simple tool designed specifically for farming setups: the capture crate.
What the capture crate does in Hytale
The capture crate is designed to instantly store small animals when used on them. Instead of leading animals with food or building temporary fences, you can pick them up and transport them directly in your inventory.
The video demonstrates this clearly with piglets, but the same method works for other baby animals and similarly sized creatures, such as young sheep.
How to catch animals in Hytale using capture crates
Step 1: Unlock the Farmer’s Workbench
Make sure you have access to the Farmer’s Workbench. This is where all farming-related tools, including capture crates, are crafted.
Step 2: Craft a capture crate
In Hytale, a Capture Crate is a special tool you can craft and use to pick up small animals and carry them with you. It’s the most reliable way in the Early Access version to relocate wildlife into pens or closer to your base.
At the Farmer’s Workbench, craft one or more capture crates. Bringing several crates allows you to capture multiple animals in a single trip.
To craft a capture crate you need 4x Wood (any wood) and 50x Essence of Life.
Step 3: Find baby or small animals
Look for baby animals, such as piglets or young sheep, in the wild. Capture crates are intended for smaller creatures and won’t work on full-sized animals.
Step 4: Use the capture crate on the animal
Interact with the animal using the capture crate. Once used, the animal is instantly captured and stored inside the crate.
Step 5: Carry and release animals at your farm
Captured animals sit safely in your inventory. When you reach your farm or pen, place the crate and release the animal where you want it.
Why capture crates are better than corralling
Manually herding animals can take time and often fails if terrain or enemies interfere. Capture crates remove that friction entirely. You can quickly fill your inventory with multiple animals, transport them safely, and set up farms with precision.
Animals you can capture
Based on gameplay shown, capture crates work best on:
- Rabbits / Bunnies
- Chicks
- Lambs
- Piglets
- Baby boars
You cannot capture full-sized livestock or large creatures (like cows, adult sheep, horses etc.) with the basic crate — they’re simply too big.
How to house animals
After catching animals like chickens, using catching crate, use the Chicken Coop to house chickens.
Farming efficiency tips
If you’re planning a farm, craft multiple crates before heading out. This lets you gather a full breeding group in one run instead of making repeated trips back and forth.
- Look for baby animals: juvenile creatures like piglets and lambs are the easiest targets.
- Use Feed Bags first: placing a Feed Bag can help bring small animals closer before you attempt capture.
- Prepare pens or enclosures: build fences around your base so you can release and contain animals easily once captured.
- Be patient: since animals aren’t tamed, they can still wander off after capture — keep enclosures secured.
Capture Crate limitations in Hytale
It’s important to understand what Capture Crates don’t do right now:
- They do not “tame” animals — captured animals are simply relocated.
- Animals will not breed by default after being captured and released.
- Captured animals don’t follow you or act as companions.
- Larger creatures and mounts cannot be captured with the standard crate.
These are part of Early Access limitations; deeper animal interaction systems may come later.
Thanks for taking the time to go through this how to capture baby animals guide for Hytale. If it helped you understand things better, do share your thoughts, impressions, or doubts in the comments section. We keep a close watch and try to respond promptly to ensure you always get the support you need.
