Best pets, levels 10 to 20
The beta caps at 20 for now, so these are the pets you can actually get. We ranked on attack speed first and the family ability second. Looks broke ties. Swing speeds come from beta testers where one was posted, and from Classic otherwise.
12 rare elite · Tirisfal Glades
Comes with 
Furious Howl and a +33% attack speed passive, and wears a spectral wolf skin nobody else has at 10.
The respawn is measured in hours.
Swing
1.5
Rare · Mulgore
One of the fastest swings in the beta, from a reported Faster Attack 6 passive. Cats already hit hardest, so speed adds straight to damage.
It can learn 
Bite, 
Growl, 
Prowl and 
Claw, but testers say you need to train those before you tame it.
Swing
1.2
18 to 19 elite · Shadowfang Keep
A wolf that swings at 1.2 and still learns Furious Howl.
It spawns deep in the dungeon, possibly past the first boss. Bring a group.
Swing
1.2
19 to 20 · Ashenvale
Knows Bite 3 on tame and can learn Furious Howl. A clean, normal-speed wolf if the rares are camped.
Swing
2.0
19 to 20 · Darkshore
A fast cat with a darker coat than the usual blue and white moonstalkers.
Swing
1.3
16 to 17 · The Barrens
Most plainstriders swing at 2.0. This one swings at 1.3 and learns 
Dust Cloud, the new armor shred.
Swing
1.3
19 to 20 · Darkshore
Stays see-through after you tame it, and looks even better in Prowl. Knows Claw 3.
Click the cat figurines around the Ruins of Mathystra until one appears.
Swing
2.0
15 to 16 · The Barrens
Tendon Rip slows by 50% for 9 seconds on a 30 second cooldown. The pet can apply it around corners, out of your line of sight.
Swing
2.0
Teens · The Barrens
Savage Rend on top of Bite and Claw gives a raptor three ways to spend focus.
Swing
2.0
Dungeon · Wailing Caverns
Lightning Breath is an instant 20 yard attack. The serpent can sit back and keep casting it while it has focus.
Teach it Bite and it may run into melee after the breath.
Swing
2.0
Best leveling pets
Your pet does most of the tanking from 10 to 20. Here is the best one to tame in each starting zone, the upgrades worth a detour, and how to tame them.
Target the beast and check its attack speed before you tame. Most starting zones have something at 1.3 to 1.5, and a 1.3 pet hits about half again as often as a 2.0 one.
A beast that comes with Bite 2 or Claw 2 saves you hunting down a teacher. Pick it over an identical one that knows nothing.
As in Classic, a pet tamed below your level has to earn experience to catch up. A level 6 cat spends its first hour weaker than a level 9 wolf.
Bears hold groups with 
Swipe, spiders root with 
Web, hyenas slow with Tendon Rip, wolves buff the party with Furious Howl. Pick for how you play.
An unhappy pet does less damage. Bears and boars eat anything, so they never send you back to a vendor.
Common beasts you can count on finding, with a backup for when the first one is taken. The rares beat all of these if you can camp them, and they are on the rares page.
Orc and troll hunters
Pick
Durotar Tiger
Lv 7-8 · Cat · 1.3 swing
A cat that swings at 1.3. Nothing else near the Valley of Trials hits that fast, and cats hit hardest.
BackupVenomtail Scorpid · Lv 9-10 · 2.0
Comes with Claw 2 and 
Scorpid Poison 1, so it is useful the moment you tame it.
Tauren hunters
Pick
Prairie Wolf Alpha
Lv 9-10 · Wolf · 1.4 swing
Swings at 1.4 and already knows Bite 2 and Furious Howl 1. The best common tame near any starting zone.
BackupPrairie Stalker · Lv 7-8 · 1.5
The same wolf a couple of levels lower, at 1.5. Take it if the alphas are all claimed.
Anyone starting in Tirisfal
Pick
Vicious Night Web Spider
Lv 9-10 · Spider · 2.0 swing
Knows Bite 2 on tame, and spiders learn Web, a 20 yard root that makes kiting easy.
BackupWorg · Lv 10-11 · 2.0
Just over the border in Silverpine. Comes with Bite 2 and Furious Howl 1.
Dwarf hunters
Night elf hunters
Sorted by the level you can tame them. Most are a short detour from zones you will quest in anyway.
Moonstalker Runt
Lv 10-11 · Darkshore · Cat
A 1.3 cat at level 10. The best early upgrade on the Alliance side.
Swing
1.3
Worg
Lv 10-11 · Silverpine Forest · Wolf
Comes with Bite 2 and Furious Howl 1, so you do not need to hunt for either.
Swing
2.0
Coyote Packleader
Lv 11-12 · Westfall · Wolf
Furious Howl 1 on tame for anyone leveling on the Alliance side.
Swing
2.0
Hecklefang Hyena
Lv 15-16 · The Barrens · Hyena
Hyenas learn Tendon Rip, a 50% slow the pet brings to the target.
Swing
2.0
Ornery Plainstrider
Lv 16-17 · The Barrens · Tallstrider
Swings at 1.3 where every other plainstrider swings at 2.0, and tallstriders learn Dust Cloud.
Swing
1.3
Thunderhawk Hatchling
Lv 18-20 · The Barrens · Wind Serpent
A wind serpent that already knows Lightning Breath 2, so it fights from 20 yards the day you tame it.
Swing
2.0
Slavering Worg
Lv 18-19 · Shadowfang Keep · Wolf
Swings at 1.2. Bring a group, it spawns deep in the dungeon.
Swing
1.2
The short version for your first tame. The taming guide has the rest.
Fastest beasts up to 20In Classic this was a short quest from your class trainer at 10. Testers report pets arrive at 10 in Forever the same way.
Target the beast and look at its attack speed. 2.0 is normal. Anything lower hits more often, and it stays that way after the tame.
Testers tamed the level 12 Coldrasp at 10. It stays 12, so it will out-level you for a while.
You can only have one pet out. Dismiss the old one first, or stable it if you want to keep it.
Check the family diet before you leave town. Bears and boars eat anything, turtles eat raw fish, tallstriders only eat cheese, fungus or fruit.
Mine!
Cower 2