November 25, 2015 (2015-11-25) – April 3, 2025 (2025-04-03)
Nature Cat is an educational animated children's television series that aired from November 25, 2015, to January 2, 2024, onPBS Kids and is aimed at children aged 3–8.[2][3] The series follows the adventures of four main characters: Nature Cat, Hal the Dog, Daisy the Bunny, and Squeeks the Mouse. The show has been nominated for aDaytime Emmy Award for "Outstanding Writing in an Animated Program".[4] The series debut in November achieved nearly 3.7 million viewers, and by March it has achieved 69 million video streams across online platforms.[5]
In October 2016,Nature Cat was renewed for a second and third season.[6] The second season premiered on January 1, 2018, while the third premiered on April 18, 2019. In 2021, the show was renewed for a fourth and fifth season. The fourth premiered on May 9, 2022, and the fifth and final season premiered on April 17, 2023.[7] The series has aired 5 standalone specials, with the newest releasing on April 3, 2025.
On June 5, 2018, the first DVDOnward and Pondward was released.Tomy owns the toy license toNature Cat, and has released several stuffed animals of the main characters.[8]
Set in the suburban areas ofChicago, the series follows Fred, a yellow cat with dreams of exploring nature, but being a house cat, no instincts for the outside world.[2]. Once his family leaves for the day, he transforms into his alter-ego Nature Cat and sets off on backyard outdoor adventures with his animal friends. Through the learning experiences of the characters, this series intends to encourage children to similarly engage with and develop understanding of nature.
Many primary cast members are better known for their work on the hitNBC comedy sketch show,Saturday Night Live.
Nature Cat (a.k.a. Fred) (voiced byTaran Killam[2]) is a yellow housecat and the titular protagonist of the series. When his owners are not home, Fred transforms into his alter-ego Nature Cat, narrating himself as such throughout the show. In this form, he wears a green tunic with a bronze sash and a green hat with a red feather. He is the leader of the Nature Buddies, frequently using the expressions "tally-ho!" and "onward and yonward!" when initiating and continuing his adventures, lending to his optimistic and cheerful attitude in encouraging enthusiasm for the natural world. Actor and comedian Taran Killam appraises Nature Cat as a positive character for children, describing his handling of adversity as "a great example of when you fall down you get back right up... and try it again".[10] He will occasionally drop from his "Nature Cat" persona where, much like a regular housecat, he can suddenly become nervous or frightened. This can include having to interact with water, lamenting "why did it have to be water?", but in these situations he ultimately ends up finding confidence to persist. When Fred turns into Nature Cat his clothes are all green.
Halbert "Hal" Alexander Dog (voiced byBobby Moynihan) is an orangeCavalier King Charles Spaniel with brown ears. He is always willing to partake in Nature Cat's outdoor excursions and share discoveries even if he initially doesn't understand them. Hal is generally absent-minded, becoming a source ofcomic relief where he may respond to others with non-sequiturs or muddled reasoning thought out loud, but can also become blissfully unaware of when he is taken into a dangerous situation. His canine capabilities make him uninhibited in approaching messy or unpleasant situations, such as digging in the ground or smelling strong odors. He is often accompanied by an inanimate chewing toy, "Mr. Chewinsky", who he converses with when projecting his thoughts. Actor and comedian Bobby Moynihan describes him as "kinda represent[ing] the kid in all of us that's like, 'I gotta get out there, I gotta do this, I gotta do this!'. Anything Nature Cat wants him to do, if it's an adventure, he's on board".[11]
Daisy (voiced byKate Micucci[2]) is a white and pinkbunny who is often the voice of reason of the Nature Buddies. She usually carrying a smartphone for use in providing supplementary information when investigating nature. Actress, comedian and musician Kate Micucci describes her as "a really sweet bunny, and she's like the middle child of the group. She's a very innocent character and she's very sweet".[12]
Squeeks (voiced byKate McKinnon[2]) is a blue and pinkmouse who is the smallest of the Nature Buddies. Actress and comedian Kate McKinnon describes her as "a sass... but sweet and so excited at the same time".[13] At times, Squeeks can act tomboyish and sassy, but she nevertheless stays focused at the task at hand. Though she is the smallest, she doesn't stop being a daring, fearless nature explorer. She is a reliable mouse who is always up for adventure and isn't afraid to get dirty. She also knows a lot of animals that are always eager to help out.
Ronald (voiced byKenan Thompson[2][14] in season 1, andChris Knowings in seasons 2–5) is a lilac overweighttabby cat and Nature Cat's primary rival, living in the backyard next-door to him. Ronald is competitive, arrogant, fairly obnoxious, vain, and lazy, often lounging around in his hammock. Actor and comedian Kenan Thompson describes him as "always trying to outdo Nature Cat because he knows that Nature Cat's awesome and everybody likes him".[15]
The series premiered in the United States onPBS Kids on November 25, 2015, with it being the highest-rated children's premiere on the network at the time.[16] It aired on Mondays and Wednesdays but was later promoted to each weekday starting January 18, 2016.[17][18] The original run ended on January 2, 2024.[19]
The series aired onFamily Jr. andFamily Chrgd in Canada,Discovery Kids in Latin America,E-Junior in the United Arab Emirates andTG4 in Ireland for season 1. It is currently unknown when seasons 2-5 will be airing internationally.
The show's soundtrack,The Green Album, was released on February 16, 2018 throughBMG Rights Management (which also owns the song publishing rights toNature Cat).
^Although Season 1 technically has 40 episodes, two episodes are omitted from this total count, as they are "Part 1" and "Part 2" of the one-hour "Ocean Commotion" special.
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