How to Include Pets in Thanksgiving Gratitude Messages

The simplest way to include your pet in a Thanksgiving gratitude message is to give them a line of their own: a card signed with their name, a caption in their voice, or a toast where you thank them out loud. Below are 12 messages to copy, grouped by where you'll use them, and one small ritual worth starting at your table this year.

All of these are written in your pet's playful voice. They're your words, not a claim about what your pet is really thinking.

Hear the difference

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This is what an AI voice of their own sounds like

Made from one photo and a typed line. No recording, no app to install. The same voice comes back in every video.

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Example made with ilovemypets.ai · free voice preview · works on your phone

Messages for a Thanksgiving card

Sign these with your pet's name. A paw print or a nose smudge is optional.

1. "Thankful for you, the couch, and whoever's in charge of the gravy. Love, Max."
2. "Another year of you coming home. That's the whole list. — Luna"
3. "I'm grateful for this family. Please send leftovers. — Biscuit"
4. "Thank you for picking me. I'd pick you again. Every time. — Pepper"

Captions for a Thanksgiving social post

Put the joke first, so it reads before the "more" cut-off.

5. "Grateful for my humans and the snacks they drop."
6. "Thankful list: walks, naps, you. In that order."
7. "Not pictured: the roll I stole. Happy Thanksgiving."
8. "This year I'm thankful for the sunny spot on the floor. And fine, my family too." (best for cats)

Lines for the dinner-table toast

Raise a glass "on behalf of" the pet, or say these in your own voice.

9. "Before we eat, a word from the dog: I love you all. Now, about sharing."
10. "Raise your glass. Lower your plate. To family, from the one under the table."
11. "I'm thankful for [pet], who greeted every one of us at the door tonight like we'd been gone a year."
12. "To [pet], who's been there for every hard day this year and asked for nothing but a walk."

Swap in your pet's real name and one real habit. A specific line ("who sleeps on the laundry the second it's folded") always lands better than a general one.

A ritual worth starting: one thing we love about [pet]

Before dessert, go around the table and have everyone say one thing they love about the pet. Kids are great at it. Guests who've only met the dog today get to join in. It takes two minutes, it's never awkward, and it gives the person who's had a hard year an easy, warm thing to say.

Write the answers down. Next year you'll have a list to read back, and over a few years it becomes the best record of who your pet was. If your pet died this year, read their list together. It's a gentle way to keep them at the table.

Turn the message into a video

If you'd rather your pet said it, upload one photo to ilovemypets.ai, pick a voice that fits them, and type any message above. Your pet says it in a talking video, and the voice preview is free; full videos need a paid plan. It downloads as a vertical MP4 you can play at the table or send to the family chat. The voice is AI-generated for fun: you write the words and your pet's voice performs them.

Want a funnier version? A pet thankful confession video pairs the thank-you with an admission about the turkey. For more formats, see our Thanksgiving pet video ideas, and for a pet you're remembering, our guide to making a pet memorial video covers how to do it with care.

Ready to hear their voice? Browse the templates and start with one photo.