diff --git a/Cargo.toml b/Cargo.toml
index d649d14573787..729279dc9ebb4 100644
--- a/Cargo.toml
+++ b/Cargo.toml
@@ -1289,7 +1289,7 @@ doc-scrape-examples = true
 
 [package.metadata.example.animated_mesh]
 name = "Animated Mesh"
-description = "Plays an animation from a skinned glTF"
+description = "Plays an animation on a skinned glTF model of a fox"
 category = "Animation"
 wasm = true
 
diff --git a/examples/README.md b/examples/README.md
index b1a97eef77fa5..a39043e7c7833 100644
--- a/examples/README.md
+++ b/examples/README.md
@@ -194,7 +194,7 @@ Example | Description
 
 Example | Description
 --- | ---
-[Animated Mesh](../examples/animation/animated_mesh.rs) | Plays an animation from a skinned glTF
+[Animated Mesh](../examples/animation/animated_mesh.rs) | Plays an animation on a skinned glTF model of a fox
 [Animated Mesh Control](../examples/animation/animated_mesh_control.rs) | Plays an animation from a skinned glTF with keyboard controls
 [Animated Mesh Events](../examples/animation/animated_mesh_events.rs) | Plays an animation from a skinned glTF with events
 [Animated Transform](../examples/animation/animated_transform.rs) | Create and play an animation defined by code that operates on the `Transform` component
diff --git a/examples/animation/animated_mesh.rs b/examples/animation/animated_mesh.rs
index 12e8ecc75c263..bd5e4b3f3e721 100644
--- a/examples/animation/animated_mesh.rs
+++ b/examples/animation/animated_mesh.rs
@@ -1,10 +1,11 @@
-//! Plays animations from a skinned glTF.
+//! Plays an animation on a skinned glTF model of a fox.
 
-use std::{f32::consts::PI, time::Duration};
+use std::f32::consts::PI;
 
 use bevy::{pbr::CascadeShadowConfigBuilder, prelude::*};
 
-const FOX_PATH: &str = "models/animated/Fox.glb";
+// An example asset that contains a mesh and animation.
+const GLTF_PATH: &str = "models/animated/Fox.glb";
 
 fn main() {
     App::new()
@@ -14,8 +15,9 @@ fn main() {
             ..default()
         })
         .add_plugins(DefaultPlugins)
-        .add_systems(Startup, setup)
-        .add_systems(Update, setup_scene_once_loaded)
+        .add_systems(Startup, setup_mesh_and_animation)
+        .add_systems(Startup, setup_camera_and_environment)
+        .add_systems(Update, play_animation_once_loaded)
         .run();
 }
 
@@ -25,27 +27,61 @@ struct Animations {
     index: AnimationNodeIndex,
 }
 
-fn setup(
+// Create an animation graph and start loading the mesh and animation.
+fn setup_mesh_and_animation(
     mut commands: Commands,
     asset_server: Res<AssetServer>,
-    mut meshes: ResMut<Assets<Mesh>>,
-    mut materials: ResMut<Assets<StandardMaterial>>,
     mut graphs: ResMut<Assets<AnimationGraph>>,
 ) {
-    // Build the animation graph
+    // Build an animation graph containing a single animation.
     let (graph, index) = AnimationGraph::from_clip(
-        // We specifically want the "walk" animation, which is the first one.
-        asset_server.load(GltfAssetLabel::Animation(0).from_asset(FOX_PATH)),
+        // We want the "run" animation from our example asset, which has an
+        // index of two.
+        asset_server.load(GltfAssetLabel::Animation(2).from_asset(GLTF_PATH)),
     );
 
-    // Keep our animation graph in a Resource so that it can be inserted onto
-    // the correct entity once the scene actually loads.
+    // Keep our animation graph in a Resource so that it can be added to the
+    // correct entity once the scene loads.
     let graph_handle = graphs.add(graph);
     commands.insert_resource(Animations {
-        graph_handle: graph_handle.clone(),
+        graph_handle,
         index,
     });
 
+    // Tell the engine to start loading our mesh and animation, and then spawn
+    // them as a scene when ready.
+    commands.spawn(SceneRoot(
+        asset_server.load(GltfAssetLabel::Scene(0).from_asset(GLTF_PATH)),
+    ));
+}
+
+// Detect that the scene is loaded and spawned, then play the animation.
+fn play_animation_once_loaded(
+    mut commands: Commands,
+    animations: Res<Animations>,
+    mut players: Query<(Entity, &mut AnimationPlayer), Added<AnimationPlayer>>,
+) {
+    for (entity, mut player) in &mut players {
+        // Start the animation player and tell it to repeat forever.
+        //
+        // If you want to try stopping and switching animations, see the
+        // `animated_mesh_control.rs` example.
+        player.play(animations.index).repeat();
+
+        // Insert the animation graph with our selected animation. This
+        // connects the animation player to the mesh.
+        commands
+            .entity(entity)
+            .insert(AnimationGraphHandle(animations.graph_handle.clone()));
+    }
+}
+
+// Spawn a camera and a simple environment with a ground plane and light.
+fn setup_camera_and_environment(
+    mut commands: Commands,
+    mut meshes: ResMut<Assets<Mesh>>,
+    mut materials: ResMut<Assets<StandardMaterial>>,
+) {
     // Camera
     commands.spawn((
         Camera3d::default(),
@@ -72,34 +108,4 @@ fn setup(
         }
         .build(),
     ));
-
-    // Fox
-    commands.spawn((
-        SceneRoot(asset_server.load(GltfAssetLabel::Scene(0).from_asset(FOX_PATH))),
-        AnimationGraphHandle(graph_handle),
-    ));
-}
-
-// Once the scene is loaded, start the animation
-fn setup_scene_once_loaded(
-    mut commands: Commands,
-    animations: Res<Animations>,
-    mut players: Query<(Entity, &mut AnimationPlayer), Added<AnimationPlayer>>,
-) {
-    for (entity, mut player) in &mut players {
-        let mut transitions = AnimationTransitions::new();
-
-        // Make sure to start the animation via the `AnimationTransitions`
-        // component. The `AnimationTransitions` component wants to manage all
-        // the animations and will get confused if the animations are started
-        // directly via the `AnimationPlayer`.
-        transitions
-            .play(&mut player, animations.index, Duration::ZERO)
-            .repeat();
-
-        commands
-            .entity(entity)
-            .insert(transitions)
-            .insert(AnimationGraphHandle(animations.graph_handle.clone()));
-    }
 }