Pass artist cuddling sick animal (7)
I believe the answer is:
gorilla
'animal' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)
'pass artist cuddling sick' is the wordplay.
'pass' becomes 'go' (synonyms).
'artist' becomes 'RA' (Royal Academician, member of Royal Academy of Arts).
'cuddling' is an insertion indicator (inserted letters are embraced or welcomed in).
'sick' becomes 'ill' (synonyms).
'ra' going around 'ill' is 'rilla'.
'go'+'rilla'='GORILLA'
(Other definitions for gorilla that I've seen before include "Large animal" , "Primate - sturdily-built aggressive man" , "Chest-beating primate" , "Large chest-beating ape" , "Aggressive-looking type" .)