In May 2016 the President of the United States signed the National Bison Legacy Act, making the North American bison the official National Mammal of the United States. I think they made the wrong choice and should have gone with the white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) instead. Hear me out.
Classification: Mammals
Pig Family Playset (Toymany)
5 (5 votes)
Before I start this review, I must again thank @Kenc and the folks at Toymany for gifting me this set as a review sample for the Blog!
The set we are looking at today consists of eight figures of domestic pigs. There are four sculpts: 1) sow, standing; 2) boar, sitting; 3) piglet, resting; and 4) piglet, standing.
White Lion Family (Toymany)
4.6 (11 votes)
Before we begin, I would like to thank bmathison1972 for sending this set to me, which he received as a review sample from ToyMany. Be sure to use his discount code, BMLION20, if ordering directly from ToyMany’s website, and receive a 10% discount.
In the Timbavati region of South Africa there once lived a population of leucistic Southern African lions (Panthera leo melanochaita) that were white in color and are thought to have existed there for centuries.
Sea Lion (Sealife by CollectA)
5 (6 votes)
Review and images by Sam; edited by bmathison1972
Sea lions are some of the most popular sea animals on the planet. Often confused with true seals (Phocidae), they are classified as eared seals (Otariidae). These playful creatures are known for their remarkable swimming behavior and their social behavior and loud vocalizations.
Tigress (Wild Animals by Papo)
4 (6 votes)
This Papo tigress #50003 was first released in 2004 and retired in 2012 as part of their Wild Animals line and was also included in their gladiator series of figures; there was a fighting male lion figure alongside her.
The following post will regale yet another tale of an animal with a predilection for human kills.
Bats (Play Visions)
5 (3 votes)
There are two mammals, or perhaps broadly groups of mammals, that exemplify Halloween. One is the black cat. The other is the bat. Bats have a long history in human folklore, tradition, and fictional literature and cinema. In North America, the Creek, Cherokee, and Apache viewed the bat as a trickster god.
Brazilian Three-banded Armadillo (ANIA Animal Adventure by Takara Tomy A.R.T.S.)
5 (3 votes)
Review and images by Sam; edited by bmathison1972
The Brazilian three-banded armadillo (Tolypeutes tricinctus) is a species of armadillo endemic to eastern Brazil, where it can be found in the caatinga and cerrado biomes. Contrary to popular belief, it is one of only two species of armadillo that can roll up into a ball for defense, along with the La Plata three-banded armadillo.
Gorilla, infant (Baby Wildlife by Toymany)
5 (3 votes)
Author’s note: Normally in October I follow the ‘spooky’ critters theme. However, I wanted to get this sixth and final Toymany baby African animal up on the blog, which like others I have reviewed recently, was courtesy of @Kenc and our friends at Toymany. My other posts this month will stick to the traditional theme :-).
Common Zebra, foal (Baby Wildlife by Toymany)
5 (6 votes)
Before I start this review I must once again thank @Kenc and our friends at Toymany for donating this review sample. This is the fifth in a series of six baby African animals I will be reviewing as part of Toymany’s 2024 Baby Wildlife collection.
Baby zebras are remarkable creatures.
Pygmy Hippopotamus (Wild Safari Wildlife by Safari Ltd.)
4.1 (11 votes)
I wasn’t originally going to post a review this week but there was one last figure I wanted to cover before October began and creepy critters would dominate the blog. It’s the Safari Ltd. pygmy hippopotamus (Choeropsis liberiensis) and the reason I wanted to cover it sooner than later is thanks to a certain baby pygmy hippo that has taken the internet by storm.
Old English Sheepdog, 2024 (Farm World by Schleich)
4.7 (3 votes)
Before I start this review I would again like to thank our friends at Happy Hen Toys for donating this review sample. It was on my radar when it was first announced, but I wasn’t 100% sure I wanted it. I am happy to have received this figure to see it in-hand and better appreciate it.
Vietnamese Pot-bellied Pig (Farm World by Schleich)
4.4 (7 votes)
Today it is my great pleasure to share one of my holy grail figures with the blog, the 2014 Schleich pot-bellied pig. This figure was retired in 2018, one year before this blog was launched and I got into extant animal toys. I don’t know how it came across my radar but for a couple years now I’ve been looking at eBay listings for it, in the hopes that I could find one for a decent price.
Reticulated Giraffe, calf (Baby Wildlife by Toymany)
4.8 (5 votes)
Before I start this review I must once again thank @Kenc and our friends at Toymany for donating this review sample, the fourth in a series of six I will be reviewing!
The reticulated giraffe (Giraffa reticulata) breeds every 20-30 months. The gestation period is roughly 457 days.
Pig (Farm World by Schleich)
5 (4 votes)
The figure we’re looking at today is not one that I deliberately added to my own collection, it was one that was given to my barely one year old daughter while visiting some relatives. They handed her the pig to play with and then insisted she should keep it. Well, she’s too young for this sort of toy, so it has been sitting on my shelf until she reaches the recommended “3 years and up” age.
Fjord Mare (Horse Club by Schleich)
4.4 (7 votes)
Hello again! Here we will have the review for the mare counterpart to the fjord horse pairing. If you would like to read more about the breed itself, I included a history and variety of facts for them in the Schleich’s gelding article here. The figure being discussed below is the mare figure by Schleich produced in 2024, #13980.