Yes. In The Sims 4, turning off Auto Age for Played Households stops aging for the played Sims and the household pets living with them. It is not a pets-only switch. The separate Animal Aging option is intended for livestock such as chickens, cows and llamas; it is not the control for household cats and dogs.
That distinction comes from an accepted answer on EA’s community forum, while EA’s July 18, 2023 update notes that covered animals no longer age up and die when Animal Aging is disabled. Because settings and labels can change between updates and platforms, use the current wording shown in your own Game Settings screen.
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What “aging off” means for pets
The phrase “aging off” can refer to two different controls in The Sims 4. The first is household aging: an Auto Age setting that applies to Sims in played households and, according to an accepted EA forum solution, their household pets as well. The second is Animal Aging, a separate control associated with animals kept as livestock.
For the usual question—whether a household cat or dog will grow older while aging is disabled—the practical answer is therefore yes: turn off Auto Age for the played household that contains the pet. The same setting also pauses aging for the played Sims in that household. You cannot use it to freeze only the pet while allowing its owners to continue aging.
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“Household pets” here means cats and dogs. The cited forum guidance also mentions horses, but the available evidence does not establish how every animal category in the game responds. Do not assume that one toggle governs every creature simply because the game uses the broad word “animal.”
Which setting controls which animals?
| Setting | Animals covered by the cited guidance | What else it affects | Evidence and qualification |
|---|---|---|---|
| Auto Age for Played Households | Household pets, specifically cats and dogs; the forum guidance also mentions horses | Played Sims in that household also stop aging | Accepted solution by RheaFallout on the EA community forum; this is community guidance hosted by EA, not a named EA policy statement |
| Animal Aging | Livestock such as chickens, cows and llamas | EA says covered animals no longer age up and die when the option is turned off | Electronic Arts update dated July 18, 2023 |
The table is the key to avoiding a common settings mistake. Selecting Animal Aging because you want a cat or dog to remain young addresses the wrong category. Conversely, changing household Auto Age is not the documented way to manage livestock aging.
How to stop a played household pet from aging
The exact navigation labels can differ by platform or later patch, and the cited sources do not verify a single current path for PC, Mac and console. Use this procedure as a checklist against the settings screen in your installed version rather than as a promise that every menu has identical wording.
- Identify the household. Confirm that the cat or dog is part of the played household whose aging you want to pause. The accepted forum answer describes the setting as applying to a played household, not to an individual pet selected in isolation.
- Open the game’s settings. Go to the current Game Settings or equivalent options screen in your copy of The Sims 4. Look for the aging controls and distinguish the household Auto Age control from Animal Aging.
- Disable Auto Age for Played Households. Turn off the option that controls automatic aging for played households. This is the control associated with household Sims and their pets in the cited guidance.
- Apply the change using your version’s on-screen control. Menu wording and confirmation behavior are not established consistently in the available sources, so follow the button labels presented by your platform.
- Remember the household-wide effect. The played Sims in that household will also stop aging. If you want those Sims to age normally, this setting does not provide a pet-only exception.
Because the sources do not confirm platform-specific navigation, do not rely on an old screenshot or a menu path copied from another edition. The reliable part is the setting’s scope: Auto Age for Played Households governs the played household and its household pets, while Animal Aging is the livestock control.
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What happens to the Sims who own the pet?
Disabling household Auto Age pauses more than the animal’s life stage. The accepted EA forum answer explicitly describes the setting as stopping aging for played Sims together with their pets. A household can therefore remain at the same ages while the option is off.
This matters when planning a long-running save. A young adult Sim will not progress to the next life stage under that household setting, and the household cat or dog will not progress either. If you later turn Auto Age back on, the game’s subsequent aging behavior will depend on the current settings and update; the cited sources do not specify whether any missed time is immediately applied or how every life stage is recalculated. Treat re-enabling the option as a separate decision rather than assuming a particular catch-up result.
When Animal Aging is the setting you need
Animal Aging applies to a different group: livestock such as chickens, cows and llamas. This is the relevant control when your concern is a farm animal from the livestock systems rather than a cat or dog living in a household.
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The update does not turn Animal Aging into a universal animal switch. The forum guidance distinguishes livestock from household pets, so use the category that matches the creature you are managing. If you are unsure whether an animal is treated as livestock or as a household pet, check how it is represented in your household and the wording beside each setting instead of inferring from its appearance.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Common situations and the correct choice
You want a cat or dog to stay at its current age
Disable Auto Age for the played household containing that pet. Do not choose Animal Aging for this purpose. Accept that the played Sims in the same household will also be paused.
You want the household Sims to keep aging but the pet to remain young
The cited guidance does not describe a pet-only aging switch. Auto Age is presented as a household-level control, so the documented setting cannot separate the pet from the Sims who live with it.
You are managing chickens, cows or llamas
Use Animal Aging, the separate livestock control. EA’s July 18, 2023 patch note says covered animals no longer age up and die when that option is turned off.
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You are asking about an animal not listed here
Do not generalize from the cat-and-dog or livestock rules. The available evidence does not establish the behavior of every other animal type. Identify the animal’s game category and consult the current description beside the relevant setting in your version.
If a pet still appears to age
Work through the scope of the setting before concluding that it failed:
- Check that Auto Age was disabled for Played Households, rather than changing only the separate Animal Aging option.
- Confirm that the pet belongs to the played household whose setting you changed. The accepted answer describes a household-level effect.
- Check the current setting after returning to the game, because a later patch may rename or reorganize controls.
- Note your platform and game version when seeking help. The available sources do not verify identical menu paths on PC, Mac and console.
- If you use mods, remember that mods can alter game behavior, but no specific mod effect or conflict is established by the cited sources. Avoid treating a mod diagnosis as confirmed without evidence for that particular mod and version.
These checks separate a category error from a possible game-specific problem. Choosing Animal Aging for a household dog, for example, does not test the household Auto Age rule at all.
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Cats and dogs are household pets associated with The Sims 4’s Cats & Dogs Expansion Pack. The aging distinction above concerns how the settings work once those household pets are present; it does not change the pack’s ownership requirements. The question is about aging controls, not about purchasing or comparing editions.
What the evidence does—and does not—establish
The household-pet rule is supported by an accepted answer from an EA community forum contributor, so it should be understood as forum guidance rather than a direct quotation of an EA policy document. The livestock rule is supported by EA’s July 18, 2023 official update, which specifically says that covered animals no longer age up and die when Animal Aging is turned off.
The sources do not provide a verified, universal menu path for every platform, a complete list of all animal types, or a guaranteed description of what happens after aging is turned on again. Game updates can also alter labels. For a current save, rely on the setting descriptions visible in your installed version while preserving the central distinction: household Auto Age for played Sims and pets, Animal Aging for livestock.
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