Vincent the Pull Along Elephant

Vincent the Pull Along Elephant — low, squat and steady, for a toddler who has only just found their feet

A soft-bodied elephant on four wooden wheels, with a 60cm cord, a detachable double cord and a safety link that snaps apart if it is pulled too tight. He stands 16cm tall, which makes him the lower and stabler of our two Little Big Friends pull-alongs — and that matters more than it sounds when the person pulling him has been walking for about a fortnight.

🐘 He goes where he's pulled, which is the whole point

A new walker doesn't need a toy that does things. They need a reason to keep going — something behind them worth glancing back at. Vincent follows, bumps gently over the edge of a rug, and waits when they stop. That is the entire job, and he does it without a single battery, flashing light or tune.

Being short and wide, he also stays on his wheels. A taller pull-along carries its weight higher up and goes over on its side at the first sharp turn, which is where a lot of them get abandoned. Vincent is the one that keeps rolling.

🪝 The cord, and the bit of it that matters most

It runs to 60cm in full, which is a proper towing length — enough for Vincent to trail behind rather than clip a toddler's heels. It's a two-part cord, so it can be run shorter while they are still unsteady and lengthened as they get confident.

The important part is in the middle: a small plastic safety link that snaps apart if the cord is pulled too tight. That is deliberate. It is what stops a taut cord staying taut, and it is the single thing worth knowing before you buy any corded toy for a one-year-old. Both cords also detach entirely, so Vincent becomes an ordinary soft toy and the cord needn't be anywhere near a baby who isn't using it.

🚶 What pulling a toy actually teaches

More than it looks. A toddler towing something has to walk forward while attending to something behind them, adjust their grip when it snags, and stop and reverse when it catches on a chair leg. That's balance, grip strength and a first bit of problem solving, all disguised as a lap of the hallway. There's more on this in our guide to push and pull toys.

What we like about it

• Soft-bodied and cuddly, unlike most pull-alongs — he works as a soft toy with the cord off
• The lower of our two, at 16cm, so he's the steadier on turns
• Real wooden wheels rather than moulded plastic
• A 60cm cord with a safety link that breaks apart under tension
• Two-part cord, so the length can be shortened while they're unsteady
• No batteries, no sound, nothing to switch off
• Retro styling that doesn't look like it came free with something
• PVC free
• A first birthday present that gets used the same day

Specification

• Suitable from: 12 months
• Height: 16cm
• Cord: 60cm, detachable two-part cord with a plastic safety link that separates if pulled too tight
• Wheels: wood
• Materials: soft-touch fabric body with wooden wheels. PVC free
• Safety: UKCA and CE marked
• Care: wipe clean with a damp cloth and allow to air dry. Not suitable for the washing machine
• Range: Jungle, by Little Big Friends

❓ Frequently asked questions

Will he roll properly on carpet?
On hard floors and short pile, easily — wooden wheels and a light body. On deep or shaggy carpet he'll drag, and a determined yank can pull him over onto his side. He's the better of our two for carpet because he's low, but if your floors are thick wool throughout, a wooden pull-along with larger wheels will roll more happily. We'd rather say so now than have him stay in the box.

Is the cord safe?
This is the question everyone asks, and the answer is better than most: the cord has a plastic safety link in the middle that snaps apart if it's pulled too tight, so it can't stay taut. Both cords detach completely as well, so when Vincent is in the cot or the pram the cord can simply be off and away. None of that replaces supervision — a corded toy should not be left with a baby unsupervised or anywhere near a sleeping child — but the design takes the worst case seriously.

How long is the cord?
60cm in full, which is enough for him to trail properly behind rather than get under their feet. Because it's a two-part cord you can run it shorter at first and lengthen it as they get steadier.

My little one isn't walking yet. Is it too early?
He's rated from 12 months, and a baby who isn't up yet will still get use out of him: cord off, he's a soft toy, and crawling after something on wheels is its own good game. Just don't expect towing until they're upright and confident.

Can I wash him?
Wipe clean with a damp cloth and air dry — the wooden wheels rule out the machine. Worth a wipe after a few trips round the garden path.

Can he go outside?
Yes, on a patio, path or decking. Grass and gravel will defeat the wheels, and wet grass will mark the fabric.

Is he a good first birthday present?
One of the better ones. He's for exactly the thing a one-year-old is busy doing, he needs no setting up, and he's a soft toy as well as a wheeled one — so he isn't wasted on a baby who's a few weeks off walking. Our best toys for a 1 year old has the rest of our picks for that birthday.

🧸 Which pull-along?

We stock two of the Little Big Friends pair. Both have the same 60cm safety cord and the same wooden wheels, so the choice comes down to steadiness against presence:

• Vincent the elephant — this one. 16cm, low and wide, so he carries his weight near the floor and stays on his wheels through a sharp turn. The better bet on carpet, and the one for a brand-new walker.
• Gina the giraffe — 23cm, the showier of the two and the one a toddler spots on a shelf. The long neck costs her some stability, so she tips more readily than Vincent does.

If you'd rather have wood than fabric, our wooden pull-along snail and wooden crocodile have bigger wheels and cope better with thick carpet — they just don't double as something to cuddle.

Vincent also belongs to the Little Big Friends jungle cast, alongside Gina the giraffe, Tim the tiger and Jackson the lion, so he sits happily with Tiny Friends Vincent, the musical Vincent with his mechanical music box and the jungle pram spiral. Our guide to the jungle collection runs through what each piece does.

See them all in our Push & Pull Toys collection, everything by this maker in Little Big Friends, or the jungle theme in the Jungle Collection.

Safety information

Adult supervision recommended. Not suitable for children under 12 months. The cord's safety link is designed to separate under tension — check that it is intact and correctly joined before each use, and replace nothing with a substitute cord or string. Keep the cord away from a baby's neck, and remove it before the toy goes in a cot, pram or anywhere a child sleeps. Inspect the cord, link and wheel fixings regularly and stop using the toy if anything is damaged or loose.

❤️ From our family to yours

Carefully chosen products for babies, toddlers and parents. Browse more push and pull toys and the rest of the Little Big Friends range — free UK delivery on orders over £25.