Big cat gifts — tiger, lion, leopard & cheetah
The best gifts with big wild cats for children: tiger, lion, leopard and cheetah. From cuddly toys and puzzles to books, LEGO and clothes.
By Sonja ·
How lovely that you’re looking for a gift for a little animal lover! 🐾 Big cats really capture the imagination: the tough lion, the striped tiger, the graceful leopard, the powerful jaguar and the lightning-fast cheetah. Whether your child loves The Lion King or is fascinated by real predators — with a big-cat gift you can hardly go wrong.
Below you’ll find our carefully chosen favourites — sustainable and with beautiful design where possible — handily sorted by type, with an overview by animal. From cuddly toys and toys (such as figures) to puzzles, books, LEGO, crafts and school things.
The big wild cats
🦁 Lion
The king of the savannah — tough, with a mane and an impressive roar. Lions (and The Lion King!) appeal to almost every child.
🐯 Tiger
The largest cat in the world, with its unmistakable stripes. A real crowd favourite, also as a cheerful print on clothes.
🐆 Leopard
Graceful and mysterious, with beautiful rosettes on its coat — popular with slightly older children, also as a pattern and in creative hobbies.
🐆 Jaguar
The most powerful big cat of the Americas, with a spotted coat and the strongest bite of all the cats. Tough, muscular and mysterious.
🐈 Cheetah
The fastest land animal in the world: slender, muscular and lightning fast. A real favourite to watch — and to draw.
Our favourite big-cat gifts
Below is our selection by type — from cuddly toys and figures to puzzles, books, LEGO, crafts, school things and accessories.
The product links are affiliate links: if you order through one, you support Kindkado with a small commission — at no extra cost to you. The shops are Dutch online shops that deliver in the Netherlands and Belgium, and the product names are in Dutch.
Cuddly toys
Soft big cats to cuddle — from a cheerful yellow lion to a sweet cheetah. A lovely gift that lasts for years.
Knuffel Cheetah
Knuffel Leeuw - Geel - 17 cm
Knuffel Leeuwin - 17 cm
Trixie knuffeldoekje - Mr. Lion
Figures & animals
Realistic and wooden figures to act out the savannah with, to collect and to discover. From a tough Schleich tiger to a beautiful wooden Holztiger lion.
Schleich Leeuw, Brullend 14726
Schleich 14974 Leeuw
14729 Schleich bengaalse tijger
Playmobil® 72089 Dierentuin: Tijger en bezoeker
Holztiger - leeuwin van hout
Holztiger - leeuw van hout
Holztiger - tijger van hout
Wildernis Luipaard 80566
Holztiger — panter (hout)
Puzzles
From sturdy first puzzles for toddlers to challenging jigsaws with hundreds of pieces — all starring lions, tigers or leopards.
Mijn eerste puzzels - Tijger&Lachende walvissen
Ravensburger puzzel Luipaard 100 XXL stukjes
Ravensburger puzzel mufasa koning der leeuwen 200 XXL stukjes
Leeuwen in de Savanne (500) - Ravensburger Legpuzzel
Tijgers in de boom (1000) - Educa Legpuzzel
Houten puzzel Leeuw (121) - Rainbow Wooden Puzzles Legpuzzel
Ashley Rader - Cheetah - 1000 stukjes - Puzzel
Games
Games starring animals, for every age. For young children (about 3–5) there are fun games such as a tile-matching game and SmartGames Safari Park Jr. From age 6, the Junglelife fact kwartet (the Dutch version of happy families) is great fun: playing and learning at the same time.
Kwartet Junglelife
Safari Park Jr. (SmartGames)
Waar wonen de leeuw en zijn dierenvriendjes? - HABA Legspel
Books
Beautiful picture books and read-aloud books starring big cats — from exciting and funny to moving. There are also a few English-language books with beautiful photos and lots of information about the big wild cats. (The others are Dutch editions.)
Tijger, waar ben je?
De leeuw in de muis | Rachel Bright
Ssst! De tijger slaapt
Wie wint? - De leeuw tegen de tijger
De wilde wereld van katten
The Big Book of Wild Cats (Engels, 7-10 jr)
Exploring Nature: Big Cats (Engels)
The Big Book of Big Cats (Engels, 9-12 jr)
Let’s build: LEGO, DUPLO & Plus-Plus
Build your own lion or tiger! Especially beautiful is Grimm’s Rainbow Lion building set — a gorgeous, generous open-ended toy that children build with creatively for years. Also fun: the cheerful MagnaTiles Safari Animals, magnetic tiles to set up your own savannah in no time. And from sturdy DUPLO and Plus-Plus for the youngest to impressive LEGO sets for the real fan.
Bouwset Regenboog Leeuw
MagnaTiles safari animals 25 delig
Plus-Plus tube leeuw: 100 stuks (4324)
LEGO® DUPLO 10442 Families van wilde dieren: pinguïns en leeuwen
LEGO® Art 31217 fauna collectie tijger
LEGO® Creator 31386 wilde dieren majestueuze leeuw
Crafts & creative
Get stuck in with a big-cat theme. For the youngest there are cheerful stickers and colouring and drawing fun; from about 6–8 come Pixelhobby, mosaic by numbers and painting by numbers; and older children (and handy grown-ups) can go wild with crochet, embroidery and counted cross-stitch. Sorted below from young to old.
Stickers Kenia
Van punt tot punt kleur- en tekenplezier Leeuw tekenboek
Pixel Set - Dierenrijk
Pixelhobby set - luipaard
Mozaïek Kunst met een nummer | Wilde dieren
Schilderen op nummer - jachtluipaarden
Schilderen op nummer - luipaard op tak
Rico Hooki Hooki smyrna set - wandkleed leeuw
Ricorumi haakpakket - tijger
Borduurpakket - kruissteek kussen - luipaard
Telpakket luipaardenkoppel
Cool school things
Off to school or childcare in style with your favourite big cat: backpacks and water bottles. At Studio Bambacht you can even have your child’s name put on the backpack.
Trixie drinkfles leeuw - 350 ml
Drinkfles Falk 500 ml Tiger Classic Navy
Trixie RVS broodtrommel 1200ML - Mr. Lion
Trixie Mr. Lion rugzak met naam - leeuw kinderrugzak
Trixie kinderrugtas leeuw - 7,5L
Rugzak Andreas Tiger Classic Navy
Even more fun ideas!
Cheerful bits and bobs with big cats: an animal necklace, a night light, headphones, a story viewer or even a balance bike.
Tijger stapeltoren
Joueco The Wildies Family trek-tijger
Verhalenkijker Leeuw - Beige
Dierenketting Lev het Luipaard
Dierenketting Lou Luipaard
Zaklamp Lion
KIDYEARS Kinderkoptelefoon Lion
Wandlamp Leeuw | Verslingerd aan hout
Loopfiets Leeuw - Geel
2027 Big Cats Wall Calendar (Art Wolfe, Engels)
Iron-on plaatje - tijgerkop
Party & dressing up
Make it a party! From cheerful bunting and party baking bits to costumes and masks — become a lion yourself and prowl through the savannah all day.
Little Dutch slinger - leeuw
House of Marie - baking cups - luipaard
Masker Leeuw
Jumpsuit Leeuw
A gift that helps: threatened big cats
Did you know that the tiger, lion, leopard and jaguar are all on the list of threatened species? Because of poaching and the loss of their habitat, these beautiful predators are at risk of extinction.
At the Wereld Natuur Fonds (WWF Netherlands) you can give a gift that does good straight away: gorgeous cuddly toys, puzzles and games about wild animals. Or symbolically adopt a tiger — you support the protection of these animals, and the child gets a sweet tiger cuddly toy with an information pack. A gift that sticks, and a lovely way to start a conversation about nature.
Big cat spotting: a real animal adventure
A big-cat gift is even more fun combined with a real day out. At these parks in the Netherlands and in these films you’ll meet lions, tigers and cheetahs up close.
Safaripark Beekse Bergen· Hilvarenbeek
🐾 On safari past lions & cheetahs — and stay the night
The largest safari park in the Benelux. From your car, the bus or the boat you come face to face with lions, cheetahs and countless other wild animals. You can even stay the night, right among the animals (see the options on the website) — a real safari adventure close to home.
Visit Safaripark Beekse Bergen →Burgers’ Zoo· Arnhem
🐾 Lions and Sumatran tigers
At this zoo you’ll see lions in the Safari and beautiful Sumatran tigers in the Rimba area. With its tropical halls and a big sea aquarium, you can easily spend a whole day here.
Visit Burgers’ Zoo →Omniversum· The Hague
🐾 Wild animals on a big dome screen
At the Omniversum you watch breathtaking nature films on a gigantic dome screen. Films about wild animals are on regularly — such as Wild Asia, with tigers among others. Check the programme to see which film is showing now.
Visit Omniversum →Or make it a film night!
Don’t fancy going out? Snuggle up on the sofa with a bowl of popcorn and a film full of big cats. A few tips (check they’re on your streaming service right now):
- 🦁 The Lion King (1994 & 2019) & Mufasa (Disney+) — the classic(s) about lions
- 🐾 The Lion Guard (Disney+) — a fun series for young children
- 🎥 Disneynature: African Cats (Disney+) — a beautiful documentary about lions & cheetahs
- 🌍 Our Planet & Night on Earth (Netflix) — stunning nature series with wild cats
Frequently asked questions
What is a nice gift for a child who loves lions or tigers?+
A gift with their favourite animal almost always goes down well. Think of a soft cuddly toy, a realistic or wooden figure, an animal puzzle, a beautiful read-aloud book or even a LEGO lion. Tip: choose something that suits their age — a cuddly toy or figure for young children, a challenging puzzle, book or building set for older ones.
What age are these gifts for?+
There’s something for almost every age. For babies and toddlers, soft cuddly toys, wooden figures and first puzzles are ideal; young children love playing with figures and doing crafts; from primary school age, bigger puzzles, books, LEGO and creative hobbies (such as embroidery or painting by numbers) come into their own.
What is a nice big-cat gift under €10?+
Definitely possible! Think of a Schleich figure, a small cuddly toy, a puzzle, a kwartet card game (the Dutch version of happy families), a Plus-Plus set, stickers or a craft kit, a piece of clothing or a lion mask. Plenty of lovely little gifts for a small budget.
Which big-cat gifts are sustainable and beautiful?+
Wooden figures by Holztiger, toys by Little Dutch and sturdy brands such as Schleich, Ravensburger and HABA last for years and have a beautiful, timeless design. Books and a good puzzle are also often kept or passed on.