In this hectic holiday season, sometimes you need a “cute” break, i.e., a few minutes to delight in some photos or videos of adorable pets. But Darcy the hedgehog is so cute, you might just want to follow her on Instagram all year long.
Her Tokyo-based owner, Shota Tsukamato, created the social media account to post photos of Darcy’s adventures, each day staging a whimsical photo of the 3-year-old hedgehog.
Darcy, who is named after the former Smashing Pumpkins bassist D’arcy Wretzky, is often pictured with props that accentuate her tiny size, such as cups or playing cards. In an interview with Instagram’s blog, Tsukamato said that he purposely does not include captions, so that people can use their own imaginations when viewing the pictures.
“I imagine a page from a children’s picture book,” Tsukamato said. “I want [the Instagram account] to be a surrealistic story and I even want people to question whether or not Darcy really exists in real life.”
Tsukamato added that his goal was to make Darcy “the most famous hedgehog in the world.” So far, he seems on track to reach that goal, since @darcytheflyinghedgehog is one of the most popular pet-accounts on Instagram, with more than 352,000 followers to date.
For those who want to create their own unique pet photos, Tsukamato’s suggestions include not forcing a pet into a certain pose to get more natural reactions, and shoot consecutive photos to ensure you get the best shots.
