Pokemon Are Not Animals, They Are Kami

gamerant.com:

Pokemon is a series with creatures that many western audiences equate with animals. After all, some are kept as pets and on farms. Many also resemble animals such as sheep, dogs, cows, birds, and so much more. The belief in Pokemon being like animals has reached ethical arguments, such as how making them fight or stay in Pokeballs is bad or good. Even PETA has condemned the franchise for how it treats its «animals.» However, western audiences really don't understand that Pokemon is linked to Japan's Shintoism, animism, and kami. They are actually not animals at all.

Shintosim dates back to around 300 BC and is a religion native to Japan. Due to this, Shintoism is greatly ingrained in Japanese culture, and in its media. The religion is polytheistic, with an infinite number of kami. To call a kami a god is not quite appropriate though, as kami can be historical figures, inanimate objects, mountains, and forces of nature. They are more akin to spirits, with some being powerful enough to create a country and others just being a family's favorite bowl.

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The creator of Pokemon, Satoshi Tajiri, was partly inspired to make Pokemon through his love of bug collecting. Due to his life growing up in Japan, though, Shintoism also played a huge influence on his creations and ideas. The Pokemon types themselves are reflective of a possible way to categorize kami, as kami can be beings of grass, flying, ghost, bug, steel, fairy, and all the rest. Many Pokemon are based on specific kami in Shintoism, such as Whiscash, who resembles namazu from Shintosim, which are catfish that can cause earthquakes.

There is also Shiftry, a grass and dark type that resembles kami called Tengu.