30 Best Anime With Animal Protagonists
Sometimes we want to escape from our reality and just get into those sweet, innocent animals. When that is the case, and you are an anime lover, then this list will be for you. We are bringing you the best anime with animal protagonists you can find out there.
Do take a look at our big list below, and choose your next watch.
Beastars (2019– )
In a modern and civilized world populated by anthropomorphic animals, there is a cultural divide between herbivorous animals and carnivorous animals. Legoshi, a large gray wolf, is a timid and quiet student of Cherryton Academy where he lives in a dorm with several other carnivorous students including his outgoing Labrador friend, Jack. As a member of the school’s drama club, Legoshi works as a stagehand and supports the actors of the club headed by the star pupil Louis, a red deer.
Out of nowhere, Tem the alpaca is brutally murdered and devoured in the night, setting off a wave of unease and distrust between the herbivore and carnivore students. At the same time, Legoshi has a fateful encounter with Haru, a dwarf rabbit who has been in love with Louis, and begins developing complex feelings for her.
Silver Fang (1986)
Gin is a striped Akita-Inu puppy named after his silver coat. Shortly after being born, he watches his father, Riki, get killed by Akakabuto, a bear that terrorizes everything in his path. Being the third generation of bear-dogs to try to stand up against Akakabuto, he ventures out to find dogs to join him in his fight against the demon bear.
Odd Taxi (2021– )
Set in a world of anthropomorphic animals, Odd Taxi tells the story of Odokawa, a 41-year-old walrus taxi driver whose parents abandoned him in elementary school, leaving him generally asocial. However, he usually has conversations with other animal inhabitants who ride in his taxi on their respective journeys around Tokyo, where the series is set.
Odokawa’s conversations with these people unravel into a series of mysteries and acts of violence, including that of a missing high school girl. Because of the case of the missing girl, the police have been tracking leads back to him, and now he is being followed by both the yakuza and the police.
The Cat Returns (2002)
After helping a cat, a seventeen-year-old girl finds herself involuntarily engaged to a cat Prince in a magical world where her only hope of freedom lies with a dapper cat statuette coming to life.
Chi’s Sweet Home (2008– )
A grey and white kitten with black stripes wanders away from her mother and siblings one day while enjoying a walk outside with her family. Lost in her surroundings, the kitten struggles to find her family and instead is found by a young boy, Youhei, and his mother. They take the kitten home, but, as pets are not allowed in their housing complex, they try to find her a new home. This proves to be difficult, and the family decides to keep the kitten.
While being housebroken, the kitten mistakenly answers to “Chi” (as in shi- from shikko, the Japanese word for “urine”) and this becomes her name. Chi then lives with her new family, learning about different things and meeting new people and animals.
There She Is (2003– )
“There She Is” is a short love web miniseries about a rabbit named Doki and an (initially hesitant) cat named Nabi. The pair live in a world where cross-species love is forbidden and often pays homage to the way the LGBT community has historically been treated.
BNA (2020)
Morphed into a raccoon beast-man, Michiru seeks refuge, and answers, with the aid of wolf beast-man Shirou inside the special zone of Anima-City.
She and Her Cat: Everything Flows (2016)
The story occurs over the span of a year. On a rainy Spring day, She finds Chobi outside and brings him home with her. Chobi falls in love with his owner because of her kindness and beauty. During the summer Chobi gets a girlfriend, Mimi. Mimi loves Chobi and wants to marry him, but he refuses because he is in love with Her. On an autumn day, She has a long conversation over the phone.
When it is over She cries and becomes depressed. Chobi does not understand what the conversation was about or what happened but concludes that it was not her fault. He stands by Her and comforts her. Time goes on and it becomes winter. She continues going to work and moves on with her life. In the end, She and Chobi are happy with their life together and say in unison, “I think that the both of us probably like this world.”
Rilakkuma and Kaoru (2019)
Her life might be a little mundane, but Kaoru gets to go home to Rilakkuma, her endearingly lazy roommate who happens to be a fuzzy toy bear.
Arashi no yoru ni (2005)
After meeting on a stormy night, a goat Mei and a wolf Gabu become sworn friends. However, trouble sets afoot among the two unlikely friends after their secret gets out, putting them in a perilous yet amazing adventure.
Wolf’s Rain (2003–2004)
In a post-apocalyptic future where humans live in domed cities surrounded by wasteland, wolves are assumed to be two hundred years extinct. Yet wolves do walk among them, disguising themselves as humans in order to survive in the human world.
Pui Pui Molcar (2021– )
Pui Pui Molcar centers on the wonderful soft world where cars are guinea pigs and humans are occasionally plastic dolls. This stop-motion animated short series brings all you ever wanted in a TV show to life.
Mitchiri Neko (2018)
The cute and mysterious cat-like creatures called Mitchiri Neko that seem to gather around each other if you leave them alone now get their own anime with a glorious voice cast! The free and happy-go-lucky Mitchiri Neko’s daily life is filled with fluff and surreal laughs! Say it with me, “Mitchiri! Mitchiri!”
Mikan Enikki (1992–1993)
Mikan Enikki features a cat whose name is ‘Mikan’, which in Japanese means tangerine and the color orange. He can talk the human language, read, write and do several tasks like a human. The story focused on the mischief of Mikan, Tom, and his other cat friends.
The Great Warrior Wall (2019– )
The main character of Seya Wolf is a wolf raised up by herbivores. The adventure starts with his pure mind of being the hero who can save the world by summoning giant warriors, but he has unconsciously been involved in some huge conspiracies…
Poyopoyo Kansatsu Nikki (2012)
Poyopoyo revolves around a spherical orange cat named Poyo, and the family that adopts him. The slice-of-life stories only have very mild continuity between them, and can be taken as stand-alone episodes.
Episodes often deal with regular day-to-day interactions between family members, occasionally showing how family members celebrate holidays or deal with everyday inconveniences like rainstorms. At first, younger brother Hide dislikes Poyo, but as the stories continue, we see that Hide has grown somewhat attached to the family pet.
Genji Fantasy: The Cat Fell in Love With Hikaru Genji (2019)
The Tale of Genji Museum in Uji City, Kyoto will be airing a short film blending history and fantasy, the story follows a modern high school girl named Hana who is transformed into a cat and transported back in time. She travels 1,000 years ago to the Heian Era as portrayed in The Tale Of Genji, arguably the most famous novel in Japanese literature.
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Guided by the novel’s titular character Hikaru Genji, Hana experiences firsthand the emotions that the author Murasaki Shikibu depicted in her novel. The short features scenes based on The Diary of Lady Murasaki and other historical materials, such as the real-life noble Fujiwara no Michinaga swiping early drafts of The Tale Of Genji because he could not wait to read chapters as Murasaki wrote them. ×
My Roommate Is a Cat (2019– )
Novelist Subaru Mikazuki, who is shy and not good with other people, and Haru, the cat that has been living a severe stray life. This is a story of them suddenly living together and describes the happiness of living together from both points of view.
Aggretsuko (2018–2023)
Retsuko is a 25-year-old and single anthropomorphic red panda, working in the accounting department of a Japanese trading firm, trying her best to navigate through the typical problems encountered by young adults in 21st-century Japan. Facing constant frustration every day from pushy superiors and co-workers, Retsuko lets out her emotions by going to a karaoke bar every night and singing death metal.
After five years of working the daily grind, Retsuko’s misery causes her to undergo a series of events that put her job in jeopardy, forcing her to shift her relationships with her co-workers and ends up changing her life in unexpected ways. After this, she continues to come up with ways to find happiness and eventually comes to the conclusion that she would one day like to get married and raise a family. Unfortunately, her social anxiety combined with her naïveté often causes her to get into far more trouble than she expects while pursuing her dreams.
Beginning with Season 4, the show focuses less on Retsuko as the protagonist and more on her colleagues at the office, each with their own unique set of problems. In the upcoming Season 5, the show will mainly focus on Retsuko being involved with the Japanese government along with Haida’s life after quitting his office job.
Shirokuma Café (2012-)
Pushed by his mother to stop lazing around the house, a Panda searches for a part-time job but has trouble finding one to accommodate his laziness. He soon stumbles upon the Shirokuma Cafe, run by a Polar Bear who is holding interviews for a part-time position with his faithful customer Penguin.
Panda applies for the job but fails the interview, with the job instead going to a human girl named Sasako. However, the others soon point Panda towards a part-time job at a nearby zoo.
Tama of Third Street: Have You Seen My Tama? (1993)
Living on Third Street is Tama, an adorable kitty with a smiley face on his head and an incurable wanderlust. Often running off to explore the town, he’s joined by his best friend, a timid but kind-hearted pooch named Pochi.
He’s also accompanied by the rest of his crew, the idol of Third Street Momo, mischievous Tora, wayward stray Nora, young Koma, sleep-prone Beh, athlete Kuro, and laid-back Gon. The group is sometimes joined, when not tormented, by the mean but secretly softhearted Bull.
Princess Tutu (2002–2003)
Princess Tutu follows Duck, a duck who was transformed into a young girl and takes ballet at a private school. She becomes enamored of her mysterious schoolmate Mytho, and transforms into Princess Tutu to restore his shattered heart. Mytho’s girlfriend Rue transforms into Princess Kraehe to frustrate Tutu’s efforts, and Mytho’s protective friend Fakir discourages Mytho’s burgeoning emotions.
When it becomes apparent that Duck, Rue, Mytho, and Fakir are meant to play out the characters in a story by a long-dead writer named Drosselmeyer, they resist their assigned fates and fight to keep the story from becoming a tragedy.
Dog & Scissors (2013)
Dog & Scissors centers around Kazuhito Harumi, a high school boy who is obsessed with reading books. One day, while reading in a cafe, he is shot and killed when he attempts to protect a random stranger during a robbery. As he is determined to read his favorite author’s unreleased last work, he gets a second chance and is reincarnated as a long-haired dachshund.
As a dog he is adopted by Kirihime Natsuno, the very person he tried to save, as well as the only person who can understand him in his new form. Kazuhito then discovers that she is not only his favorite novelist, but also a sadist who enjoys terrorizing him with scissors.
Damekko dôbutsu (2005– )
One day, Uruno, the useless Wolf, is looking for a new home. He finds a forest full of animals that don’t quite fit their parts. The Bunny is ill-tempered, the Cheetah is clumsy, etc. He finds other useless people to be friends with.
The Red Turtle (2016)
A man finds himself a castaway on a deserted tropical island where he struggles to survive. Slowly he develops the skills to support himself, but when he attempts to leave on a makeshift raft, a large turtle that lives offshore thwarts his escape. This turtle will change his life.
Cat Shit One (2010)
The manga follows three American soldiers (who are anthropomorphic animals) in the Vietnam War named Botasky, Perky and Rats. All three are in the recon team called “Cat Shit One”. Each mission (or chapter) shows the daily activities of the reconnaissance group in Vietnam. There are sections of the manga which give brief history and truths behind the war, such as the types of weapons used by different countries and the activities of forces in the war. At the end of volume one, there is a chapter called “Dog Shit One”—separate from the main story—showing human characters.
In Cat Shit One ’80, the story continues to follow the three main protagonists as they became involved in various low-intensity conflicts in the 1980s. Perky, now a member of the elite Delta Force, was attached to the Special Air Service and was involved in various SAS operations while Rats and Bota were involved with the US operation in Afghanistan against the Soviet invasion.
Oruchuban Ebichu (1999)
Each adventure chronicles the housekeeper hamster Ebichu, devoted to her oft-indifferent owner, who she calls Goshujin-sama (“Master”) and is only identified as OL (“Office Lady”), a single 28-year-old (she is 25 years old in the anime series) who doles out cynical commentary and the occasional beating on the rodent. Such abuse is usually caused by Ebichu’s almost disturbing lack of tact or propriety, which often embarrasses OL in front of other people. Ebichu is a faithful housekeeper but occasionally carries out a practical joke and also hurts OL’s feelings.
Ebichu tends to take this in stride with endless praise and compliments of her master. Ebichu often attempts to correct OL’s bad decisions, such as her berating of OL’s obnoxious, immature and untrustworthy boyfriend whom Ebichu nicknames Kaishounachi (worthless man). Maa-kun and Lady Hanabataki are friends of OL. Some surrounding characters also appear.
Bubu Chacha (1996– )
Randy Rand is a curious 3-year-old boy who loves his pet dog named Chacha. One day, Randy is about to get hit by a car, when Chacha protects him and ends up dying. In a strange miracle the night after the accident, Chacha’s spirit is reincarnated into a living yellow toy car so he can be with him all the time.
The two became inseparable afterward and have many adventures in which they learn valuable things in life. The story is set in Greenhill Town, which is loosely based on Los Angeles, California.
Doraemon (1979–2005)
Doraemon is a robotic cat that comes from the 22nd century. He comes to the 20th century and stays with Nobi Family. The Nobis love Doraemon very much. So Doraemon always helps the Nobis with the devices from the 22nd century.
