I like badgers, you might've noticed, specifically european badgers. They're stripey, they're pudgy, they're cute, they build comfy dens. It's always funny to watch furries make badgers these brick shithouse broad-shouldered dudes, because in reality, they're just stocky, maybe the size of a particularly large housecat. They fit on your lap. They're really not that big.
They are so good,,
Anyway, they appeal to me. I brought home Caby's Wild Republic badger plushie last trip, but she wanted it back, so I dutifully brought it back and gave myself the goal of finding one of my own to bring home. Complicating matters is that badgers aren't exactly common in South Wales—they might have range across most of the UK, but they're really more a North Wales/England/Scotland concern. I'm guessing South Wales is just too industrialized for 'em, so most places around there don't really sell the plushies either.
Anyway, I succeeded at my goal four times over. From smallest to largest!
The Puppet Company finger puppet
This was a little guy I saw on a rack at Cardiff Creative in Queens Arcade. I'd already gotten some of the larger ones by this point, but c'mon. I only go to Wales once a year. Once you subtract the puppet part out (which is still fun to play with even as I write this—gonna get three more and put on a show for people), he's just a little plushie, basically. I've pondered finding something I can stick him on, but haven't figured that out yet.
Ravensden Suma Collection
This guy actually came in a little sponsorship box for the Wildlife Trust of South and West Wales, supporting badger vaccination for bovine tuberculosis. The whole culling debate makes me a little sad if I let it, but obviously, don't murder wildlife because you think it'll ward off the miasmus, please. I didn't only buy the box for the plushie, of course, I bought it because it was a good cause. The plushie was just a nice extra.
Anyway, he's super cute, and indeed very fuzzy. I actually keep him on my desk next to the pocket Paddington I bring on every trip as a good luck thing (you might remember him from the 2023 trip!), since they're about the same size. Can you imagine Paddington riding a badger like it's a horse? I feel like I can.
Keycraft Living Nature
Probably the most fun story of the whole trip, we got this one at Margam Park in the gift shop. By that point, we were still hoping somewhere we went sold specifically the Wild Republic badger that I was trying to replace for myself, but when Caby spotted this boy among a bunch of other plushies (including sheeps, because sheeps are about as iconic in Wales as dragons), I fell in love just the same. Supremely soft (actually made of a fluffier material than the Wild Republic one along the back, though the head and legs are comparable), very good weight to him. To the touch, this one is my favorite.
Wild Republic Cuddlekins
Alas, we did not find a Wild Republic badger out and about, so I just wound up ordering one from Wild Republic themselves. Interestingly, I didn't notice the difference in sites, but you can buy these on the Wild Republic US site despite us obviously not having european badgers and them being fairly unknown outside of, I dunno, kids who grew up with Redwall and Hufflepuffs. Either way, it was waiting for me when I got home alongside the AOL PhotoCam I got from a guy on Reddit.
If you're wondering why I was so set on this specific brand, other than having had Caby's in my room for like 16 months and wanting one just like it, Wild Republic is probably my favorite plushie brand. I own a couple ones from them now, including a porcupine, a capybara (of course parked next to the badger to the right of my monitor because I'm gay), and a river otter, and while they're nothing super amazing, they are really nicely put together, not cheap feeling, and the variety of species you can get from them is impressive. I think their whole business model is selling this stuff to zoos and rescue habitats and the like, so having that kinda variety tracks anywhere where there's exotic animals. Even my mom has a Wild Republic plushie in her room, a grey squirrel.
It's interesting to see how each of the plushies represent the badger's fluffy back. The Wild Republic one mixes white and black hairs, while everyone else just goes with a kind of sandy solid grey color. This can vary from badger to badger in real life also, so I don't much mind. This one's also my only badger plushie with a felt nose. The other three use plastic noses, which is kind of a fun sensory difference. Animals always have cold, wet noses, and the plastic approximates that decently.
All together now! I also put in the little crocheted triceratops I got from the same store as the finger puppet, though this lad was actually made by someone local. He doesn't quite fit the page, but as soon as I saw him, I knew I had to have him to go with the other big blue triceratops I own (who doesn't?). Lookit his little legs. According to his tag, he was born on July 15, 2025. The other plushies had "arrived on" dates (for the aliens) or death dates (for the ghosts). I thought that was pretty cute too.