Capybaras Are the New Axolotls
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Beforeaxolotlswere everywhere, the “It” stuffed animal was asloth, and before that it was allama, and before that it was anarwhal. Now there’s a new kid in town: the capybara.
The South American rodents are furry, stout, and cartoonishly oversize — adults weigh more than 100 pounds — but also remarkablyfriendlyand chill. They’ve been steadily rising in stature.Encantofeatured ascene-stealing capybara, back in 2021, that still gets love online. There is a viralcapybara song, hugely popular TikToks of capybarassoaking and eating giant yuzu in Japanese onsens, and countlessmemesand GIFs. (My husband is a fourth-grade teacher and says one of his students this year was so obsessed that they regularly used capybara GIFs in class presentations.) Taylor Moore, a social-media manager for the San Diego Zoo, told the newsletterLink in Biothat in addition to posts about elephants, the zoo’sposts about capybarasget the highest engagement. And now toymakers are obviously taking notice: Jellycat, known for its nontraditional stuffed animals and its influence in the toy world (the staff of the Strategist last year could not get enough ofthis jaunty stuffed shrimp), recently releasedClyde Capybara. And acapybara from Pusheenthat has a cat and a yuzu on its back was so popular it sold out two days after it launched on June 25. (You can sign up for back-in-stock notificationson the product page.)
The path from meme to mass market to status stuffie requires a very specific recipe. Like the axolotl, the animal must have a name that’s fun to say; bonus points if it’s also hard to spell. It has to be cute and funny and a little bit ugly — jolie laide, if you will. Capybaras check all these boxes, plus they are cuddly and have cute personalities in real life. They are smart, social herbivores that like to swim and are oftenkept as pets, like an irresistible mix between a corgi, a hippo, and a pony.
“The weirder it is, the more kids tend to gravitate toward it,” says Alexis Bobbitt, owner of the Park Slope toy storeLittle Greenand parent of a 4-year-old son who is obsessed with capybaras. Bobbitt told me that when kids of all ages come into her shop, they seem to prefer the offbeat stuffed animals she carries over the traditional bunnies, dogs, and cats. And what’s weirder than a 100-pound rodent who loves a spa day? Below are my favorite capybara toys available to buy right now. And if you notice any other especially oddball stuffies, consider adding them to your cart too — based on insider intel, if I had to bet on what might show up in toy stores come 2026, theblobfishand a specific type of long-fingered lemur called anAye Ayeare solid contenders.
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The Strategistis designed to surface useful, expert recommendations for things to buy across the vast e-commerce landscape. Every product is independently selected by our team of editors, whom you can read abouthere. We update links when possible, but note that deals can expire and all prices are subject to change.
