SH’s Wild Animals for Stardew Valley
Fills the valley with wildlife: dozens of species that appear depending on the time, weather and season, with babies, aquatic animals and their own sounds.
Download SH’s Wild Animals
More screenshots on Nexus Mods ↗
What this mod does
SH’s Wild Animals, by SmolHooman (plurffle), populates the valley with wild animals. Deer, foxes, birds, aquatic animals and many more appear and roam the maps depending on the time of day, weather and season, making the world feel much more alive.
What it adds
- Dozens of species, many with color or seasonal variants, and babies like fawns, bear cubs or chicks.
- Aquatic and desert animals, such as axolotls, jellyfish, seahorses or lobsters, plus optional extra creatures.
- Progression: few animals appear at first and, as you progress, more show up and some become less skittish.
- Custom sounds and animations since 1.3.1.
The author won’t add catching or hunting animals: they’re just for watching.
Requirements and compatibility
It needs SMAPI, Content Patcher and Custom Companions; Generic Mod Config Menu lets you adjust how many animals spawn or disable groups. It’s compatible with Stardew Valley Expanded and other map mods. If you don’t use mods that change the maps, the author recommends her Lite version. Version 1.3.2 (June 16, 2026, 17.6 MB) optimizes the translations. It can cause some slowdown because of how it spawns animals. There are Spanish translations on Nexus.
User rating
Highlights and things to keep in mind
- A much livelier world with dozens of species
- Animals based on time, weather and season
- Configurable by group and abundance
- Updated in June 2026
- Requires Custom Companions
- Possible slowdown on some PCs
- Large file (17.6 MB)
- The page doesn't clarify multiplayer
Requirements
- Stardew Valley 1.6.x (PC)
- SMAPI 4.x
- Content Patcher and Custom Companions
- Optional: Generic Mod Config Menu
How to install it
- First install SMAPI and Content Patcher (see their mod pages) and launch the game once with SMAPI to check that everything loads.
- Install Custom Companions from Nexus.
- If you're updating from an old version, delete the previous folder first.
- Open the SH's Wild Animals page on Nexus Mods, go to the Files tab and click Manual download on the main file (SH's Wild Animals 1.3.2; if you don't use map mods, check out the Lite version linked on the page first). You need a free Nexus account to download.
- Unzip the .zip outside the game folder and move the resulting folder into the Mods folder inside the game folder.
- Adjust animal abundance and the active groups in Generic Mod Config Menu.
Version history
-
1.3.216 Jun 2026Current
Optimizes the translations and removes the custom sprites for the Community Center Junimos
-
1.3.112 Sep 2025
Sounds, animations and new animals like peacocks, hedgehogs and kiwis
-
1.3.026 Jun 2025
Aquatic and desert update with more than 10 animals
Common problems
Can I hunt or catch animals?
No. They're decorative and the author has no plans to add that.
Does it affect performance?
The author warns that it can cause some slowdown, although she didn't notice any in her tests.
Which version should I use?
The full one if you play with mods that change the maps, such as SVE; if not, the author recommends the Lite version.
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